AccuWeather

“THE MOST IMPOrTANT THINg IN A WEATHEr FOrECAST IS ACCUrACY. WE STAND BY OUr NAME, AND THE STATISTICS SUPPOrT IT.”

Founded: 1962 by ceO Joel Myers

Private forecasts for consumers, media outlets and enterprises Number of employees: 500 Money raised: Self-funded

Criticism of AccuWeather has been heating up since Trump nominated Barry Myers to head NOAA. Widespread reports have alleged the company engaged in a multiyear effort to push the government out of providing free weather forecasts. Despite the reams of coverage, Joel Myers angrily denies it, “That’s a bunch of bullshit,” he fumes. “Nobody was trying to restrict the role of the National Weather Service.”

He also flatly denies that harassment took place at AccuWeather, despite the fact that the company paid $290,000 in 2018 to settle a Department of labor investigation that found “widespread sexual harassment at AccuWeather.” “We denied all that,” he says.

“There was no proof of harassment,” says Barry, who had the top job at the time.

less easy to dismiss is the pack of hungry competitors that are looking to eat AccuWeather’s lunch, though Joel

tries to with a blanket “I’m not going to sit here and talk about competitors” before allowing, in a later interview, that “Everything is accelerating. Any business leader who says he knows what the world will look like in 20 years is making it up.”

Where AccuWeather will be in 2039, when Joel is 99 years old, is anyone’s guess. The company won’t discuss specifics of its succession plans, and none of Joel’s seven children are involved with the business day to day. The Myerses are surprisingly sanguine about the future.

“Eighty is the new 60,” Barry says. “Joel’s an energetic guy. He’s working 24-7, and he loves what he does.”

“I’ve seen lots of new companies come along,” Joel says. “Some of them will find a niche, and some of them will fail.”