What AirGradient does

AirGradient is a Chiang Mai, Thailand-based company that designs, manufactures, and sells open-source and open-hardware air quality monitors targeting schools, cities, research institutions, NGOs, and individual citizen scientists. Its product line includes the AirGradient ONE indoor monitor (RESET Air certified), the Open Air and Open Air Max outdoor monitors, the forthcoming AirGradient Go portable monitor, and DIY kits (Basic and Pro). All designs are released under Creative Commons CC-BY-SA, with schematics, firmware, and calibration algorithms publicly available; customers retain full data ownership and can route data to Home Assistant, Homey, OpenAQ, or any custom server.

The underlying platform pairs industrial-grade sensors (Plantower PMS5003, Senseair S8, Sensirion SGP41/SHT40) on ESP32-C3 microcontrollers with a cloud dashboard offering real-time visualization, threshold alerts, 5-minute historical data with CSV export, daily/weekly reports, and a public global map (including the first real-time global CO2 map, launched July 2024). The company monetizes through one-time hardware sales (DIY kits and pre-assembled units at accessible price points), an optional subscription dashboard, and project-based deployments with schools, NGOs, and city governments (e.g., UNICEF Lao PDR, UNDP toolkit, SAMHE UK, Bamboo School Thailand). GTM is multi-modal: product-led growth via shop.airgradient.com, community-led growth through a 7,000+ member forum and >85,000 open-source downloads, sales-led institutional outreach with >25 research partners, and an affiliate/partner program offering 6–8% commission.

The company is independent and founder-led by CEO Achim Haug, with no disclosed venture funding, and operates from a small remote team (11–50 employees) including developers in Ukraine. It is a 1% for the Planet member, GDPR/CCPA compliant, references ISO 27001 in its security policy, and has earned mainstream press coverage (The New York Times, BBC Newsround) and three 2023 Microsensors Challenge awards.

Name

AirGradient

Legal name

AirGradient Co. Ltd.

Website

https://airgradient.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

AirGradient designs and sells open-source air quality monitors (indoor, outdoor, portable, and DIY kits) plus a cloud dashboard and global map, serving schools, cities, NGOs, research institutions, and citizen scientists across 80+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Air Quality Monitoring

NAICS

Automatic Environmental Control Manufacturing for Residential, Commercial, and Appliance Use (334512), Other Measuring and Controlling Device Manufacturing (334519)

SIC

Auto Controls For Regulating Residential & Comml Environments (3822)

akta.pro primary industry

Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Environmental Monitoring (VOC/CO2/PM2.5) (HSAHAGAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Smart Air Quality Sensors, Purifiers & Humidifier/Dehumidifier Integration (HSAOANAH), Smart Climate & Air Quality (Thermostats, HVAC, Purifiers, IAQ Sensors) (HSAPAQAD)

Keywords

• Air quality monitoring
• Open-source hardware
• Indoor air quality
• Outdoor air quality sensors
• Citizen science monitors

Headquarters

HQ city

Chiang Mai

HQ country

Thailand

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Hardware Sales (Monitors & Kits): Sale of fully assembled indoor (AirGradient ONE) and outdoor (Open Air, Open Air Max) air quality monitors, as well as DIY build-it-yourself kits with pre-soldered components. One-time hardware purchase model. Industry-grade sensor modules are the same as those in monitors costing hundreds of dollars more.
2. Dashboard / Data Platform Subscription: Optional access to the AirGradient cloud dashboard for data visualization, alerts, reports, and public map sharing. Customers can alternatively use self-hosted or third-party platforms (Home Assistant, Homey) without subscription.
3. Professional Services & NGO/School Deployments: Project-based collaboration with schools, NGOs, city governments, and research institutions for large-scale air quality monitoring deployments (UNICEF Lao PDR, SAMHE UK, Bamboo School Thailand, UNDP toolkit).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

AirGradient designs, manufactures, and sells open-source air quality monitors for indoor, outdoor, and portable use, capturing parameters such as PM, CO2, TVOC, NOx, temperature, and humidity. Each unit ships with (or can connect to) a cloud dashboard for real-time visualization, alerting, and API access, and the full schematics, firmware, and calibration methodology are released as open source so users can self-build, modify, or run the devices locally without vendor lock-in.

Product overview

AirGradient offers a portfolio of professional-grade air quality monitoring products centered around three core monitor types (Indoor, Outdoor, and Portable), complemented by an open-source data platform. The AirGradient ONE provides indoor monitoring with RESET Air certification using high-accuracy sensors (PM, CO2, TVOC, NOx, temperature, humidity). The Open Air and Open Air Max models extend monitoring to outdoor environments with weatherproof enclosures. The forthcoming AirGradient Go brings portable, personal monitoring to the lineup. All monitors are available as DIY kits (Basic and Pro) for self-builders or pre-assembled for plug-and-play use. The ecosystem is tied together by the AirGradient Dashboard and Public Map platforms, which provide real-time data visualization, alerts, reporting, and CSV export. The GO IAQS Score Simulator enables users to preview air quality scoring. The company also operates Community/NGO and Partner programs to extend reach. All products feature open-source hardware designs licensed under CC-BY-SA, allowing users full data ownership and interoperability with platforms like Home Assistant, Homey, and OpenAQ.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• AirGradient ONE: Indoor air quality monitor measuring PM2.5, CO2, TVOCs, NOX, temperature and humidity
• AirGradient Open Air
• AirGradient Open Air Max
• AirGradient Go

Products and services

• ONE Monitor (DIY Kit) Entry-level open-source air quality monitor for indoor use, capturing PM, CO2, TVOC, temperature, and humidity; ships as a DIY kit aimed at makers and individual buyers who want to build and configure the device themselves.
• Open Air Monitor Open-source indoor/outdoor air quality monitor for general consumer and prosumer use, with multi-parameter sensing and optional cloud dashboard connectivity.
• Open Air Max (Professional / RESET Air certified) Commercial-grade open-source air quality monitor carrying RESET Air certification, positioned for offices, schools, and built-environment professional deployments requiring validated performance.
• Go Portable Air Quality Monitor Portable, open-source air quality monitor designed for on-the-go and field use, enabling personal or short-term measurement outside fixed installations.
• Holistic Air for Schools Tailored air quality monitoring solution for K-12 schools and educational institutions, bundling monitors with a deployment approach suited to classroom and campus-wide IAQ programs.
• UNDP Air Quality Toolkit Open-source air quality monitoring toolkit associated with UNDP, designed for cities, governments, and development programs to deploy low-cost monitoring networks.
• Cloud Dashboard (data platform) Subscription-based cloud dashboard that ingests data from AirGradient monitors for real-time visualization, alerting, and API access; monitors can also be operated locally without it.
• Donation-to-Code Program Program in which a portion of every monitor sale funds placement of monitors in underserved communities and supports ongoing open-source development of the AirGradient platform.

Quantifiable outcome

• >15,000 monitors sold in 2024 to customers in >80 countries
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

AI capability3 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• UNICEFcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUNICEF partnered with AirGradient to build a nationwide school air quality monitoring project in Lao PDR, linking real-time data with local action and public awareness campaigns. This is one of AirGradient's largest institutional deployments, covering schools across an entire country.
• UNDP (United Nations Development Programme)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAirGradient collaborated with UNDP to create the AirGradient-UNDP Air Quality Toolkit — a comprehensive resource helping communities and governments build affordable local air quality monitoring programs. The toolkit is deployed globally as part of UNDP's development initiatives.
• SAMHE (UK School Project)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSAMHE (Self-Assessment and Monitoring of Health Environments) is a UK school project using AirGradient air quality monitors in classrooms to support education, citizen science, and healthier learning spaces. Led by Imperial College London. AirGradient has gone beyond contractual duties to support the project's complex needs.
• Amazon Web Services (AWS)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAmazon Web Services supported AirGradient's Bamboo School project — an initiative to expand pollution monitoring and awareness in schools in Thailand. AWS provided cloud infrastructure and/or funding to scale the monitoring program.
• ICIMOD (International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAirGradient and ICIMOD are collaborating on air quality and climate data in mountain regions where monitoring gaps have real consequences. Focuses on high-altitude and remote areas with limited existing monitoring infrastructure.
• OpenAQcoreTechnology or IntegrationAirGradient shares public air quality data with OpenAQ — an open air quality data repository for research and public awareness. AirGradient is explicitly committed to sharing (not monetizing) air quality data as a public good. Data shared under CC-BY-SA 4.0 license.
• 1% for the PlanetcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAirGradient joined 1% for the Planet in 2023 and pledges 1% of all company sales (not just specific product lines) to environmental protection organizations vetted by the network. The company went '100% in' — committing its complete sales rather than a subset — because the planet deserves it.
• Economist Educational FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Economist Educational Foundation uses AirGradient air quality and environmental dilemmas to help students think critically about science and society, integrating real-world monitoring data into educational curricula.
• Home AssistantcoreTechnology or IntegrationCommunity-maintained integration allows AirGradient monitors to send data to Home Assistant. AirGradient was featured as 'Works With Home Assistant' in August 2025. The open firmware and API enable this integration without proprietary lock-in.
• SEEN Team (Central California)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSEEN Team partnered with AirGradient to facilitate low-cost air quality monitoring in rural, disadvantaged communities in California's San Joaquin Valley — an area with extreme climate injustice and the worst air quality in the United States. Goal is to increase awareness and provide data for local decision makers.
• Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAirGradient participated in an Air Quality Sensors and Drones Workshop at Empa in Switzerland. Empa is a leading materials science and technology research institution. The collaboration focuses on scientific rigor in air quality monitoring and sensor evaluation.
• South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD)majorTechnology or IntegrationAQMD's AQ-SPEC program tests consumer-grade air quality monitors against reference-grade equipment. AirGradient references AQMD's publicly available test reports as part of its accuracy testing methodology. AQMD is cited as a trusted third-party accuracy validation source.
• AIRLAB (École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne)majorTechnology or IntegrationAIRLAB Microsensors database tests consumer-grade monitors against reference-grade equipment and publishes comprehensive test results. AirGradient references AIRLAB test reports as part of its accuracy verification methodology and for competitive benchmarking.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Airthings: Airthings sells consumer and prosumer IAQ monitors including radon, CO2, PM, and humidity, with a subscription dashboard. Closely comparable indoor IAQ product portfolio and target buyer.
• uHoo: uHoo provides smart indoor air quality monitors with cloud dashboards for homes, schools, and enterprises. Direct overlap on multi-parameter indoor IAQ and the SaaS dashboard model.
• PurpleAir: PurpleAir sells low-cost consumer and prosumer PM sensors with a community-shared public map of outdoor readings. It is the closest direct competitor to AirGradient's low-cost, dense-network approach.
• Clarity Movement: Clarity Movement deploys low-cost outdoor air quality sensor networks for cities and communities. Directly comparable use case to AirGradient's Open Air outdoor monitors and municipal deployments.
• Airly: Airly operates dense urban and outdoor air quality monitoring networks for cities and institutions. Comparable in targeting municipalities and communities with affordable outdoor sensor deployments.
• Awair: Awair makes consumer indoor air quality monitors measuring PM, CO2, TVOCs, and chemicals, with a subscription dashboard. Direct overlap with AirGradient ONE on indoor IAQ for homes and small businesses.
• Plume Labs (by AccuWeather): Plume Labs built the Flow portable air quality monitor before acquisition by AccuWeather, targeting personal and on-the-go pollution exposure. Directly comparable product positioning to the forthcoming AirGradient Go.

Broad incumbents

• IQAir: IQAir is a global leader in consumer, professional, and outdoor air quality monitoring with the AirVisual platform. It competes across the same end-use cases (indoor IAQ, outdoor networks) but at higher price points.

Emerging players

• Sensirion: Sensirion is a Swiss sensor manufacturer whose SGP/SHT modules are used inside AirGradient and competing IAQ monitors. An adjacent sensor supplier and reference-grade developer in the same underlying sensing technology stack.
• Atmotube (by ATMOBOT): Atmotube offers portable and indoor air quality monitors for consumers and researchers. Comparable portable IAQ device category to AirGradient's planned Go product.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@AirGradient
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/airgradient

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 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 AirGradient