Watch Duty: the free wildfire alert app saving lives in California

When John Mills got caught in the path of California's Wallbridge Fire in 2020, the off-the-grid tech entrepreneur realized the chaos of trying to gather critical wildfire information could be deadly. His solution? Watch Duty — a free app to stay ahead of advancing flames.

"Hey, I live in the woods, I'm gonna die, this has to get launched tomorrow," Mills recalled thinking during that wildfire, as reported by NPR. His team built Watch Duty in just 80 days, attracting 50,000 users in its first week.