After Selling to Apple, Dark Sky’s Creators Are Reinventing Weather Forecasting Again

The creators of Dark Sky, the cult-favorite weather app acquired by Apple in 2020, pulled off something rare: they made forecasting feel personal. Dark Sky was beloved for its hyperlocal rain predictions, precise alerts and emphasis on data visualization. Now, three of its creators—Adam Grossman, Josh Reyes and Dan Abrutyn—are taking another swing at weather forecasting with Acme Weather, a new app that blends sophisticated data with fun features like rainbow and sunset alerts.

“Our biggest pet peeve with most weather apps is how they (or rather, don’t deal) with forecast uncertainty,” Grossman wrote in a blog post last week. “It’s a simple fact that no weather forecast will ever be 100 percent reliable: the weather is moody, fickle and chaotic.”

While forecasts will never be perfect, apps can be clearer about their limits. Acme Weather aims to do just that, supplementing its in-house predictions with alternative forecasts to give users a better sense of confidence and accuracy. The app is available for $25 a year, with a two-week free trial.

Grossman, a graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York, launched Dark Sky in 2012 after a surprise thunderstorm derailed a road trip. Apple later acquired the app for an undisclosed sum, integrating some of its features into its native weather app and bringing much of the Dark Sky team in-house.

After the acquisition, the Dark Sky team worked on WeatherKit, Apple’s developer-facing service that sells subscriptions to access its weather data. But at a company of that scale, “it’s difficult to try weird, new, experimental ideas,” Grossman told TechCrunch in an interview yesterday (Feb. 23).

With a new startup, the founders say they can explore more freely. Acme Weather blends serious meteorological data with lighter touches, surfacing alerts for phenomena like rainbows and especially vivid sunsets. Users can also share real-time local conditions with their community using weather icons and emojis.

“It’s the weather app we’ve always wanted, and always wanted to build,” Grossman wrote in his blog post.

Maps are central to the experience. The app offers detailed radar and lightning views, rain and snow totals, wind data and even hurricane tracking. Custom notifications allow users to tailor alerts, whether they want daily UV index updates or warnings about heavy rain over a 24-hour period.

The broader forecasting market is also heating up. Valued at $2.7 billion last year, the global market for forecasting services is projected to reach $5.2 billion by 2034, according to Fortune Business Insights.
At the same time, new technologies, such as A.I.-based forecasting models, are gaining traction. Companies including Google, Microsoft and Nvidia are investing heavily in the space, alongside high-profile backers such as Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, who have funded models designed to help farmers in Africa. Other major players include Tommorrow.io, which raised $175 million earlier this month to reach unicorn status.

Traditional meteorological institutions are evolving as well. The European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts has begun introducing A.I. forecasting tools, as has the U.S. National Weather Service. Both organizations are listed among Acme Weather’s data sources, alongside agencies in Canada, Germany and Japan. The app’s forecasts draw on a mix of numerical weather prediction models, satellite and radar data, and ground station observations.