Open embeddings for forecasting.
Sonora Research is a small team building a weekly, time-aware embedding for every place on Earth. The embeddings are free for research, nonprofit and personal use, and our papers show how we build and test them.
The founders
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Thomas Dougherty, Ph.D.
Stanford engineering PhD in the Urban Informatics Lab, where graph neural networks pulled a city’s regional signal into energy prediction (GRIDS, TOM.D, Invisible Walls) and satellite imagery became building energy models at scale (SCHMEAR).
Led R&D at Taoshi from 2024 to 2026: real-time algorithms for financial markets and the infrastructure that runs them. Earlier, machine learning and backend engineering lead at BlueUrbn. Mechanical engineering at the University of Texas at Austin.
Jay Qu, Ph.D.
Stanford physics PhD at SIMES and SLAC, on quantum materials and spin-resolved photoemission. Harvard physics BA, with nanomaterials research in the Yacoby lab.
PhD resident at X, the moonshot factory, on AI for chip design; senior data analyst at Engine Ventures in tough tech; co-founded Terra2 through the Cleantech Open; venture fellow at Romulus Capital.