Pacific Disaster Center

What Pacific Disaster Center does

Pacific Disaster Center (PDC) is a University of Hawai'i-affiliated applied science and research center founded in 1996 and headquartered in Kihei, Hawaii. PDC's flagship product is DisasterAWARE, a multi-hazard early warning and risk intelligence platform that monitors 28 natural, man-made, and biological hazard types in near real-time, integrating NASA satellite data, NOAA weather feeds, and proprietary machine learning models. The platform powers country-specific deployments including PhilAWARE (Philippines), InAWARE (Indonesia), and DMRS (ASEAN), and offers free tiers through DisasterAWARE Pro (for humanitarian and disaster management practitioners) and the Disaster Alert mobile app (for the public), alongside a DisasterAWARE Enterprise tier sold via an affiliate reseller.

PDC serves national and subnational government disaster management agencies, U.S. and allied military commands, UN agencies and humanitarian organizations, and increasingly the health security vertical. Its customers include the Philippines Office of Civil Defense, Indonesia BNPB, ASEAN AHA Centre, U.S. SOUTHCOM and INDOPACOM, UNOCHA, WFP, IFRC, and Georgetown/MedStar Health. Revenue is generated through multi-year government contracts and grants (DoD, State Department, foreign governments, international development partners), enterprise licensing via affiliate resellers, custom DisasterAWARE solution contracts, and professional services for training and exercises. The center maintains over 1,000 national and subnational risk assessments across 35+ countries through its NDPBA program and holds the lifetime United Nations Sasakawa Award for Disaster Risk Reduction, the only U.S. winner of the award.

The business is product-led at the adoption layer (free professional and consumer tiers) and enterprise/government-led at the monetization layer (custom platforms, multi-year contracts, training services). Distribution is direct for government deployments and exercises, and via affiliate resellers for the DisasterAWARE Enterprise tier. AI capabilities are concentrated in the AI Hazard Finder (NLP and generative AI for hazard identification and human-readable summaries), machine learning models co-developed with NASA for flood and landslide probability, and the proprietary All-Hazards Impact Model. Recent strategic activity (2024-2026) has emphasized geographic expansion into Pacific Island nations, Colombia, and health security; product launches for wildfire AI and enhanced hurricane monitoring; and integration partnerships with Twilio.org and UMBC for multilingual last-mile alerting.

Name

Pacific Disaster Center

Legal name

Pacific Disaster Center

Website

https://pdc.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Disaster Risk Management Software

NAICS

Community Food and Housing, and Emergency and Other Relief Services (6242), Computer Systems Design and Related Services (5415)

SIC

Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)

akta.pro primary industry

Disaster Response Coordination & Incident Command (EOC/ICS) (HLAJAGAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Emergency Management & Disaster Response (EOC, Civil Defense) (BPAIAGAE), Emergency Preparedness Planning & Readiness (HLAJAGAA), Emergency Communications, Alerting & Public Warning Systems (HLAJAGAF), Critical Infrastructure & Healthcare Continuity (HPP/COOP) (HLAJAGAH)

Keywords

• Disaster risk management
• Multi-hazard early warning
• Emergency management software
• Risk intelligence platform
• Humanitarian decision support

Headquarters

HQ city

Kihei

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Government Contracts and Partnerships: PDC operates as a University of Hawai'i applied science and research center, supported by government contracts, grants, and international development partnerships. The center serves government agencies (DoD, State Dept, foreign governments) and international organizations through funded partnerships and capacity-building programs.
2. Enterprise Licensing: DisasterAWARE Enterprise offered to business community through affiliate reseller network. Custom solutions built on the DisasterAWARE platform for government agencies and NGOs worldwide.
3. Professional Services (Training & Exercises): World-class data, technology, and scenario design for enhanced readiness. On-site instructor-led classroom training, scenario-based exercises, and exercise support services for international clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Pacific Disaster Center develops and operates DisasterAWARE, a multi-hazard early warning and risk intelligence platform that delivers near real-time, AI-enhanced hazard information across 28 natural, man-made, and biological hazard types for government disaster management agencies, humanitarian organizations, and enterprises. The portfolio includes the Disaster Alert mobile app for the public, custom national/regional platform variants (PhilAWARE, InAWARE, ASEAN DMRS), National Disaster Preparedness Baseline Assessments, AI-assisted analytics dashboards, and scenario-based training and exercise services.

Product overview

Pacific Disaster Center offers DisasterAWARE as its core multi-hazard early warning and risk intelligence platform with AI-enhanced capabilities across 28 hazard types. The product portfolio includes: DisasterAWARE Pro (free professional tier) and DisasterAWARE Enterprise (business tier); Disaster Alert mobile app (free public-facing hazard alerts on iOS/Android); custom regional variants including PhilAWARE (Philippines), InAWARE (Indonesia), and DMRS (ASEAN); advanced analytics modules including the Global Risk and Vulnerability Index, 2050 Anticipatory Risk Analysis, Fragility Index, Personal Security Index, and Food Security Index; and Training & Exercises services. PDC's AI for Humanity technology powers hazard detection, exposure estimation, and rapid analytics through AI Hazard Finder using natural language processing and generative AI.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• DisasterAWARE: Award-winning multi-hazard early warning and risk intelligence platform providing near real-time, AI-enhanced hazard information for 28 natural, man-made, and biological hazard types.
• Disaster Alert
• PhilAWARE
• InAWARE
• AI for Humanity

Products and services

• DisasterAWARE The #1 award-winning multi-hazard early warning and risk intelligence platform providing near real-time, AI-enhanced hazard information for 28 natural, man-made, and biological hazard types with customizable Smart Alerts to protect stationary and moving assets.
• DisasterAWARE Pro Free access tier of DisasterAWARE for humanitarian assistance and disaster management practitioners, providing real-time Smart Alerts, early warnings, advanced analytics, risk intelligence, and critical data for coordinated disaster response.
• Disaster Alert Mobile App Free mobile and web application providing around-the-clock early warning for all hazard types to disaster managers and the public, available on iOS and Android with live hazard updates and alerts.
• DisasterAWARE Enterprise Enterprise offering of DisasterAWARE provided to the business community through an affiliate reseller, with customizable solutions built on the award-winning disaster risk intelligence platform for asset tracking, exposure reports, and Smart Alert configurations.
• PhilAWARE Custom Philippines version of DisasterAWARE developed through partnership with PDC and the Philippines Office of Civil Defense, providing mission-critical hazard early warning and decision-support integrated into OCD's Emergency Operations Center.
• InAWARE Custom Indonesia version of DisasterAWARE deployed with BNPB for multi-hazard early warning and situational awareness across the Indonesian archipelago.
• ASEAN Disaster Management and Response System (DMRS) Custom ASEAN regional version of DisasterAWARE used by the AHA Centre for coordinating regional disaster response mechanisms and sharing situational awareness across member nations.
• National Disaster Preparedness Baseline Assessment (NDPBA) Award-winning national baseline assessment program helping countries assess risk and disaster management capacity, providing evidence-based foundation for actions and investments in achieving long-term resilience.
• Decision Support Analytics Dashboards AI-assisted big data and computing capabilities bringing actionable insights to decision-makers at global scale, including the Global Risk and Vulnerability Index, 2050 Anticipatory Risk Analysis, Fragility Index, Personal Security Index, and Food Security Index.
• Training and Exercises World-class scenario design and event simulation services including tabletop exercises, functional exercises, and full-scale exercises, leveraging real-world historical data, predictive analytics, and DisasterAWARE for enhanced readiness of international disaster management clients.

Quantifiable outcome

• 38+ international response entities coordinated through single platform during major disaster responses
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability8 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• Georgetown University / MedStar HealthflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Joint National Center for Health Security and Resilience established Health Security Operations Center (HSOC) for 2026 FIFA World Cup. DisasterAWARE used as key data source integrating health data from 16 host cities, wastewater surveillance, electronic health records, and hospitalizations. 350+ organizations enrolled for daily situation reports.
• UNOCHA Office of the Pacific IslandscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 March 2026Formalized Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen disaster preparedness and resilience across 14 Pacific Island countries. Establishes structured framework for expanded regional collaboration and coordination into long-term partnership. Leverages DisasterAWARE platform to provide early warning, risk insights, and coordinated disaster response with Fiji as key regional hub.
• Twilio.orgcoreTechnology or Integration · 2 March 2026Technology and risk-reduction collaboration to strengthen disaster early warning communications and landslide risk awareness in Cali, Colombia. Funded by Twilio.org. Initiative leverages DisasterAWARE platform and integrates WhatsApp-powered multilingual alerts to deliver critical disaster information to vulnerable communities in their native language.
• University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 March 2026Collaboration partner in Colombia early warning project. PDC working with UMBC to build operational capacity among Cali's disaster management organization (SGRED), with plans to expand AI-powered landslide risk analysis tools for early warning.
• NASAcoreTechnology or IntegrationScientific partnership providing satellite data integrated into DisasterAWARE for global wildfire detection, flood monitoring, and landslide probability alerting. NASA-PDC machine learning models combine satellite data with other sources for real-time hazard detection.
• NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)coreTechnology or IntegrationScientific partnership providing weather information integrated into DisasterAWARE for real-time wildfire alerts, tropical cyclone tracking, weather monitoring, and risk assessment. NOAA forecast data enhances early warning capabilities.
• U.S. Department of Defense (Multiple Commands)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing partnerships with DoD including SOUTHCOM, INDOPACOM, AFRICOM, U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Space Force, Special Operations, Coast Guard. PDC supports military humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations worldwide.
• ASEAN AHA CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management uses DMRS (custom DisasterAWARE) for monitoring and coordinating regional disaster response. PDC supports ARDEX multinational exercises and operational responses like Cyclone Mocha.
• Philippines Office of Civil Defense (OCD)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPhilAWARE, a custom version of DisasterAWARE, is institutionalized in OCD's Emergency Operations Center with dedicated national budget allocations and SOPs. Partnership spans over a decade of capacity building, training, and operational integration.
• Indonesia BNPBcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInAWARE, a custom version of DisasterAWARE, deployed for Indonesian national disaster management authority. Supports multi-hazard early warning and situational awareness across the Indonesian archipelago.
• U.S. Forest Service (USFS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Balkans Regional Early Warning Capacity Enhancement project. USFS collaborated with PDC on dual-location tabletop exercise in Albania and Kosovo for multinational winter storm response simulation.
• U.S. Navy / Military Health SystemcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPDC supports U.S. Navy missions including USNS Comfort medical/dental humanitarian assistance. Supported Continuing Promise 2025 mission stop in Ecuador with exercise and training components.
• World Food ProgrammecoreTechnology or IntegrationUN agency integrating DisasterAWARE for coordinated situational awareness during disaster responses. Partnered during Venezuela earthquake response coordination through HSOC.
• International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)coreTechnology or IntegrationGlobal humanitarian network coordinating through DisasterAWARE during major disaster responses. Partnered during Venezuela earthquake response with USAR team coordination.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Esri: GIS platform provider that underpins much of the world's hazard and emergency-management mapping (e.g., Hazus, ArcGIS Disaster Response). PDC builds on Esri technology, so it is a channel partner and adjacent solution provider rather than a pure competitor, with deeply overlapping customer base in government EOCs.
• Copernicus Emergency Management Service (CEMS): EU-funded program delivering rapid mapping, early warning and risk analytics for all-hazard emergency management across Europe and globally. Comparable in scope and customer base (national civil protection agencies) but publicly funded and free rather than commercially monetized.
• Palantir Technologies: Data integration and analytics platform (Foundry/Gotham) heavily used by US military, DoD and allied government agencies for situational awareness and operational coordination. Competes for the same government situational-awareness wallet though with a much broader data-platform scope.
• Maxar Technologies: Earth observation and satellite-imagery provider whose rapid-imagery products feed disaster response and humanitarian operations globally. Sits in the same supply chain as DisasterAWARE (NASA-tier upstream satellite data) and competes for intelligence budgets on the imagery/analytics layer.

Direct peers

• Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System (GDACS): Joint EU/OCHA/UNEP global disaster alert and coordination platform that delivers near-real-time multi-hazard alerts and coordinates international response. Closest functional analogue to DisasterAWARE Pro in terms of users, use cases, and government/humanitarian customer base.
• ReliefWeb: UN OCHA-operated humanitarian information service aggregating reports, alerts and analyses for disaster response practitioners worldwide. Directly comparable as a free, public-good information layer serving the same humanitarian and government user community as DisasterAWARE Pro.
• Tomorrow.io: Weather and environmental intelligence platform offering enterprise-grade hazard monitoring and alerting via API and dashboards. Direct functional peer to DisasterAWARE Enterprise on the commercial weather/risk intelligence side, targeting similar enterprise continuity-of-operations buyers.
• AccuWeather Enterprise Solutions: Enterprise weather intelligence arm of AccuWeather, providing severe-weather alerts and impact analytics to government agencies, utilities and Fortune 500 operators. Comparable on severe-weather alerting, asset protection and Enterprise subscription model.
• DTN: Environmental and weather risk intelligence provider serving agriculture, energy, transportation and public-sector operations. Comparable as a subscription-based multi-hazard intelligence platform sold into enterprise and government accounts.

Emerging players

• Google Crisis Response: Google's portfolio of crisis-mapping, AI-enhanced flood/wildfire forecasting, and SOS Alert tools offered broadly for free. Partial overlap with DisasterAWARE's public-tier AI products, with a much larger platform company behind it and growing capabilities in hazard AI.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/disasteraware
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@PacificDisasterCenter
• Facebookfacebook.com/disasteraware
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pacific-disaster-center
• Instagraminstagram.com/pacificdisastercenter

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pacific Disaster Center