AI cameras spot wildfires across California, often before humans call 911

For generations, fire lookout towers stood as landmarks across the American West.

Binoculars in hand, dedicated fire spotters scanned the landscape for smoke and radioed firefighters before flames grew out of control. But now, as California enters what is historically the most dangerous part of fire season — the end of summer before the first major rains — lone human sentries have largely given way to a new type of fire lookout on mountain tops: high-tech cameras.

What began as a small research project at UC San Diego 25 years ago has grown into a powerful network of 1,211 cameras constructed on peaks and hilltops across the state with millions of dollars in state funding and oversight from Cal Fire.

Built on towers, observatories and buildings, the cameras are part of a system called A