Sonic Fire Tech Named CES 2026 Innovation Awards® - Smart Home Category Honoree for Infrasound-Based Wildfire Defense Technology

NASA-Inspired Startup Showcases Residential, Enterprise, and First-Responder Applications as It Launches California Demo Tour and Prepares for Series A

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sonic Fire Tech, a NASA-inspired firetech startup pioneering infrasound-based wildfire prevention systems, has been named a CES 2026 Innovation Awards® Honoree in the Smart Home product category by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) for its groundbreaking Sonic Home Defense system. The recognition underscores the company’s leadership in developing safe, sustainable wildfire defense solutions designed to protect homes and communities before flames ignite.

The honor follows multiple successful demonstrations across neighborhoods in Santa Barbara, the Pacific Palisades and Altadena, as well as at the 2025 Red Sky Summit, where the company showcased its autonomous infrasound fire suppression technology for leaders in the fire tech industry.

Changing the Paradigm of Wildfire Defense with Infrasound Technology

Developed by a team with NASA aerospace research backgrounds, Sonic Fire Tech’s systems emit inaudible infrasound waves that immediately neutralize embers and disrupt the ignition process by oscillating oxygen in the air.

• Residential Wildfire Defense: The Sonic Home Defense system is being designed to protect homes from ember-driven ignition, which accounts for most residential wildfire losses. Fully customized to every floorplan and connected to extremely sensitive sensors, the system is engineered to activate as embers strike the home and stop ignition in milliseconds, unlike traditional systems that rely on latent detection due to the concern of costly collateral damage caused by false alarms.
  • Exterior Residential Defense: Exterior emitters are positioned along vulnerable areas such as roofs and vents to intercept wind-driven embers before they can ignite structural materials. The system responds in milliseconds, effectively preventing ignition from airborne fire threats even when the main fire is miles away.
  • Interior Residential Defense: Interior emitter technology represents the future of mandated fire prevention inside the built environment. Designed to operate without water, toxic chemicals, or post-incident downtime, these systems are engineered to help suppress ignition within enclosed spaces while preserving the integrity of the structure. While current interior applications are limited to non-occupied environments, the long-term vision is to extend this protection into residentially occupied homes once certification and code approvals are achieved, unlocking a new category of interior fire defense that prioritizes prevention, safety, and continuity of living.
• Industrial and Enterprise Protection: Beyond residential use, Sonic Fire Tech is developing large-scale fire defense systems for critical infrastructure such as data centers, museums, manufacturing facilities, and utility assets. The company is actively working with multiple utility customers, including a confirmed demonstration contract with PG&E.
• Firefighter and First Responder Applications: The Sonic Backpack reflects a forward-looking approach to portable, precision fire mitigation in high-risk fire environments. Originally designed for use in prescribed burn and controlled-fire scenarios, the backpack-mounted system is intended to enable immediate, localized suppression at the earliest signs of ignition, helping prevent escalation before conditions intensify. The long-term vision is to support a wide range of professionals operating in fire-prone settings, where speed, mobility, and precision can make the difference between containment and catastrophe.

“As wildfire risk accelerates across California and beyond, our communities, infrastructure, and first responders need innovative solutions to protect what matters most,” said Geoff Bruder, CEO and co-founder of Sonic Fire Tech. “Our CES recognition validates years of work to develop a technology that stops fires before they start, safely, autonomously, and without environmental harm.”

Sonic Fire Tech is launching a California demo tour, bringing live demonstrations and educational sessions to wildfire-prone regions including Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, and Lake Tahoe. The company’s mobile demo trailer will offer real-time product demonstrations for homeowners, HOAs, builders, and installers, illustrating how infrasound technology can safeguard communities and properties.

“We’ve passed the one-year mark since the Los Angeles wildfires, and the lessons are impossible to ignore,” said Remington Hotchkis, Chief Commercialization Officer of Sonic Fire Tech. “For residents in high-risk areas, wildfire risk isn’t theoretical anymore. In this moment we know that we must move beyond awareness and toward deployment and homeowner adoption of effective prevention-based fire suppression solutions. This scale of catastrophic loss invites a paradigm shift in how we approach residential fire prevention, and an opportunity to embrace Sonic Fire Tech as a replacement for mandated interior water sprinklers in residential homes.”

The company’s CES honor and recent participation in the Red Sky Summit showcase follow two additional milestones: the commercial launch of the Sonic Home Defense system in high-risk California communities and the close of a $3.5 million seed funding round co-led by Khosla Ventures, Third Sphere, and AirAngels.

Building on this momentum, Sonic Fire Tech plans to open its Series A funding round in the first half of 2026, as it scales operations to meet growing demand from homeowners, builders, and commercial enterprises for reliable, sustainable and prevention-based fire defense solutions.

To learn more, request a demo, or receive updates on the California demo tour, visit https://sonicfiretech.com.

About Sonic Fire Tech

Sonic Fire Tech develops infrasound systems to prevent fires before ignition, using no water, chemicals, or operational delays. Originating in aerospace engineering, the company serves homeowners, public agencies, and critical infrastructure. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, its goal is to advance fire defense. For more information, visit, https://sonicfiretech.com.