Kweather launches Wellbian, letting individuals earn digital assets for weather data

An era is opening where individuals can receive digital assets in exchange for providing data on indoor temperature, humidity, and fine dust levels. Individuals, who have previously remained as ‘consumers’ receiving weather information, are now becoming ‘suppliers’ who directly produce and sell weather and environmental data.

Kweather, a weather big data platform company, announced on the 8th that it will launch the weather data measurement device ‘Wellbian’ and establish a so-called ‘weather data economy’ that assigns economic value to weather and environmental data produced by individuals. Wellbian will be officially released on the 15th.

Kweather, the first private weather business in South Korea established in 1997, was listed on the KOSDAQ market in 2024. Starting with providing customized weather information to businesses and public institutions, the company has expanded its business areas to air quality measurement and ventilation·cleaning solutions.

The core of this project is to broaden the weather observation network itself to individuals and the private sector. Unlike the existing method relying on observation equipment installed by the Korea Meteorological Administration and private weather companies, the plan is to secure denser data by installing small-scale measurement devices on a large scale in homes, stores, offices, and other locations.

Wellbian measures indoor temperature and humidity, as well as fine dust (PM10), ultrafine dust (PM2.5), carbon dioxide (CO₂), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). When a buyer installs the device at home or in a business location, the measured data is transmitted to Kweather, which evaluates the data’s quality and reliability.

In simple terms, it is like placing a small ‘living weather observatory’ in every home.

Kweather plans to operate this through a five-step structure: measurement → generation → verification → valuation → reward. Among the data collected by the device, economic value is assigned to information confirmed as reliable, and participants who provided the data are compensated monthly with digital assets. The company explained that the reward scale may vary depending on the type and quality of data, as well as the location where the device is installed. However, specific reward amounts and the issuance·distribution methods of the digital assets used for rewards have not yet been finalized.

Technologically, the company utilizes the ‘DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network)’ method, which has recently gained attention in the blockchain industry. DePIN is a network design where, instead of a single company installing all physical equipment like communication base stations, servers, and sensors, multiple individuals or businesses participate in building the infrastructure and are compensated according to their contributions. A key feature is that as more participants join, the number of sensors and observation points also increases.

Kweather plans to apply this method to weather data, securing weather and environmental data from indoor spaces, alleys, and individual living areas that are difficult for existing public observation networks to capture in detail. Recently, the company has also been collaborating with digital asset wallet·security company IoTrust to develop systems for device registration, data collection, reward models, and wallet integration.

The blockchain network ‘XRP Ledger (XRPL)’ is used for the reward system. XRPL is a distributed ledger capable of handling digital asset issuance, transfers, and transaction records. Kweather plans to manage data provision and reward records through this system.

The company’s move into this business is driven by the spread of artificial intelligence (AI). For AI to predict weather more precisely, it requires not only existing regional observation data but also vast real-time data accumulated by specific regions and time zones.

For example, even within Seoul, temperature, wind, and air quality can differ between downtown, parks, and high-rise building clusters. Even within the same building, temperature and carbon dioxide levels can vary significantly depending on the floor and space. The more observation points there are, the more data AI can learn from these ‘micro differences.’

Kweather is currently promoting a business that supplies real-time weather data—such as temperature, humidity, wind, and precipitation—for 4,255 cities worldwide in a format usable by AI.

Data secured through Wellbian will be processed in Kweather’s ‘Weather AI Factory’ and supplied not only for AI weather forecasting but also to industries such as autonomous driving, smart cities, energy, logistics, insurance, and robotics.

For instance, autonomous vehicles are sensitive to localized weather changes like dense fog, heavy rain, or icy roads. Solar and wind power companies can manage power generation more easily if they can precisely predict sunlight and wind speed, and logistics companies can adjust delivery routes if they can anticipate heavy snowfall or heavy rain in advance. The insurance industry is also increasing its use of high-density weather data to analyze climate risks like flooding, heatwaves, and cold waves in detail.

Kweather plans to first supply the indoor Wellbian device, then expand the observation network with outdoor weather observation equipment, and in the long term, combine radar and satellite data.

Wellbian will go on sale on the 15th. The company is accepting global pre-orders until noon on the 14th, and pre-order customers will be able to purchase the device first on the release date. The company stated that it will apply relatively higher reward efficiency to the initial sales volume and will later adjust reward conditions based on the purchase timing of the device and the types of data collected.

Kweather CEO Kim Dong-sik said, “We aim to create a structure where individuals can directly produce weather data, use it to manage their living environment, and also gain economic value. We will build an ecosystem where the weather data produced by participants is utilized across various industries, and its value returns to the data producers.”

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