US-based Floodlight Invest bills its environmental, social and governance (ESG) data product as a "greenwash killer".

It claims its data, which it gathers using satellites, ground sensors, artificial intelligence, and academic models, enables users to reveal "the full story" on sustainability issues, in more depth than the information contained in sustainability reports provided by companies.

Part of the company's added value comes from its staff drawn from a "diverse background of academics, business, and technical skills", according to a spokesperson for the firm.

"Our products have been built on our belief that all data should be verifiable and based on strong academic foundations."

Floodlight says that its range of data collection methods enables it to "provide the context necessary for end users to reveal the true sustainability of corporations and ultimately make more informed and sustainability-based decisions".

Its methodology can quantify progress against initiatives like net-zero carbon commitments and 'compliance' with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and it is 'in line with' frameworks like the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, Floodlight says.

It claims several, unidentified, large asset managers, insurers, analysts, auditors, and ESG consulting services providers as clients.

Floodlight said it is tapping into a total addressable market for ESG data that is close to $18 billion per year, and that is forecast by Deloitte to reach over $50 billion by 2026.

The company says it plans to enhance its data offerings in future by expanding satellite access as it develops its own sensors to be placed on satellites in orbit. "This will allow for more control over geospatial and satellite data," it said.

It also plans to further develop its Floodlight online 'dashboard'.