Polymarket gambler makes $35,000 profit by using hair dryer to tamper with temperature readings at Paris airport

While global stock markets tremble amid the Iran-US war, a gambler may have just made $35,000 in profits by simply using a hair dryer. Paris police are investigating a complaint over alleged tampering of a weather sensor at its international airport, which led to an unusual spike in temperature readings, helping an unknown person make strong profits on the online betting platform Polymarket.

Two such instances were noticed by weather experts. On April 6, the temperature sensor at France's Charles de Gaulle Airport recorded an unusual spike to 22°C, CNN reported. Temperatures averaged around 18°C all afternoon and soon returned to those cooler levels after the spike. An unknown Polymarket user won his bet that Paris temperatures would hit 22°C, pocketing $14,000, the report added.

The second instance took place around nine days later, on April 15. The temperature recorded at the airport's sensor once again hit 22°C, nearly four degrees higher than the previous day. According to The Wall Street Journal, a mystery trader with the username 'xX25Xx' profited by more than $21,000 from a bet of just under $120 due to an unusual temperature spike reported on April 15. This brings the total reported profits from such bets over the two days to a whopping $35,000 (more than Rs 33 lakh), although it is not known whether it was one or more gamblers involved.

France's national meteorological agency, Meteo France, told CNN that it has formally filed a complaint regarding the "tampering of an automated data processing system" at the airport. But what is bizarre is what may have caused the temperature spike.

Weather enthusiasts speculate that a battery-powered hairdryer may have been used to tamper with the sensor, French newspaper Le Monde reported. The Guardian, meanwhile, reported that anonymous gamblers shared an AI-generated picture of a man with a hairdryer aimed at a weather station next to an airport runway on Polymarket Discord channels. "What did you do to the temperature sensor at Paris airport yesterday? Was your weapon of choice a hairdryer or a lighter?" one bettor asked another.

The Economic Times could not independently verify the reports.

Notably, bizarre bets on Polymarket have grabbed headlines since its launch in 2020. Recently, a spike in profitable bets just before US President Donald Trump's announcements has raised eyebrows over suspected insider trading. For example, reports claimed that the US armed forces captured Venezuela's then President Nicolas Maduro on January 3. Just before Trump announced this, blockchain-powered betting platforms like Polymarket and Kalshi saw a strong surge in bets placed on Maduro's capture. A pseudonymous account named 'Burdensome-Mix' was created in December. On January 2, it placed bets worth $32,000 on Maduro being ousted. On January 3, following the reported capture, the account won $436,000, BBC reported. Notably, Trump's son, Donald Trump Jr, is an investor in Polymarket and sits on its advisory board.

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