Object that cracked windshield of United flight in midair may have come from Silicon Valley startup

(KRON) -- An object that struck a Los Angeles-bound United Airlines flight, forcing an emergency diversion, may have come from a Silicon Valley startup. The flight, United 1093, took off from Denver at 5:51 a.m. bound for Los Angeles. However, after an unknown object struck the plane's windshield, it diverted to Salt Lake City for an emergency landing.

According to the National Transportation Safety Board, the plane, a Boeing 737 MAX, suffered a cracked windshield. The NTSB said it is investigating the incident.

Now a Silicon Valley weather startup has come forward to say the plane most likely struck a weather balloon. That's according to WindBorne, a weather data company based in Palo Alto that uses atmospheric balloons to collect data it leverages for AI-based forecast models.

WindBor