The Challenge: Generic Coverage That Didn’t Understand the Risk
Sorcerer builds weather balloons that collect thousands of times more data than legacy solutions, and uses it to build some of the world’s most accurate weather forecasts. That work earned them a data-collection partnership with the US National Weather Service’s National Mesonet Program. That kind of business comes with risk exposure most early-stage startups, especially software companies, never have to think about: hardware deployed all over the world, field operations, and real-world consequences if something goes wrong.
Austin and the team knew they needed startup insurance early. They went with a traditional startup broker, and at first it was fine. But at their first renewal, the price nearly doubled. There was no recourse, just a note from the underwriter that Sorcerer was “higher risk.” Shopping around turned up the same story at every broker they tried.
The Solution: A Carrier That Asked Questions
By luck, Corgi launched the same week Sorcerer came up for renewal. Austin was able to walk the Corgi team through what the business actually does (the balloons, the global deployment, the National Mesonet partnership, the specific operational risks) instead of being sorted into a generic risk bucket. Corgi came back with coverage shaped around the real business, not a boilerplate underwriting assumption.
“I was able to walk you guys through what our business actually does, and get something that was tailored to what we’re doing.” Austin, CEO of Sorcerer
The Results
1. Coverage That Fits the Actual Business
Instead of a “higher risk” label slapped on without discussion, Sorcerer got a policy built around its real risk profile: globally deployed hardware, field operations, and all.
2. A Team That Understood the Work
Corgi took the time to understand the balloons, the National Mesonet partnership, and the unique operational risks, rather than defaulting to one-size-fits-all assumptions.
3. Confidence the Policy Will Actually Cover Them
With hardware deployed across the globe, Austin needs to trust that the policy will hold up when something goes wrong. With Corgi, he does.
Why Sorcerer Chose Corgi
Understood
A team that actually asked what Sorcerer does, instead of just labelling it “higher risk.”
Tailored
Coverage matched the real risk profile, not a generic startup template.
Confident
Austin trusts the policy will cover Sorcerer when it matters most.
“Insurance has been one of those things sitting on the to-do list that needed to be taken care of,” Austin says. “After going through with Corgi and getting the questions answered, I feel like we’re in a really good spot, and we got something that’s tailored for us and exactly fits what we need.”