Debates have been initiated to discuss whether AI could be good for the future, or cause more harm to humanity. It's true that AI has the potential to cause significant damage, but there are certain tools that prove how AI can be useful when developed with the right intentions.
AI Against Climate Change
Weather in various locations has been unpredictable due to climate change, and while it affects us all, it is worse for people in the agricultural sector. Farmers in Africa, for instance, have been having trouble with productivity due to droughts.
An AI tool has been developed by a team of scientists in Senegal called Africa Agriculture Watch (AAgWa), as mentioned in Interesting Engineering, which will help farmers determine the conditions in their area to know when's the best time to be productive.
The tool works through satellite data and images, which in turn senses parameters of the ground and factors on historical production maps. Through the data, the farmers can study the potential growing conditions, as well as their effects on crops and the fertility of the soil.
African farmers are already using the AI tool. A Ghanaian farmer, Deborah Osei-Mensah expressed that they will be able to protect most of their crops if they are able to keep up with what is happening, as the tool can also provide the level of expected rainfall.
Director of Data Management at the Akademiya 2063, Racine Ly states that the tool provides a map that tells farmers what are the most likely crops that they can grow in a certain area based on the "growing condition trends."
Right now, 47 African countries have already adopted the operational AI tool. Other than being praised by non-profit organizations, the AAgWa is also said to be 94%. Mostly, the tool focuses on the reduction of losses more than production, according to Ly.
Executive Director of the African Agriculture Technology Foundation, Canisius Kanangire pointed out that the work done by Ly is helpful, especially for the farmers in sub-Saharan Africa since it's difficult to predict the yield they will have.
She added that with the AI tool being developed by Africans, the development can be adapted to the conditions of the African continent, as well as be an assurance that the technologies will be sustained.
AI Tools in Other Sectors
Before it could help with agricultural matters, AI tools have already been used for medical purposes. Doctors and other experts developed one specifically for identifying cancer, which could be a more convenient and faster process.
Clinical oncology registrar Dr. Benjamin Hunter says that in the future, they hope that it will improve early detection and potentially make cancer treatment more successful if it can highlight "high-risk patients and fast-tracking them to earlier intervention."
As mentioned in The Guardian, the initial results show that the AI model appears to identify cancerous large lung nodules accurately. They also plant o use it on patients with large lung nodules in clinics to see if it can accurately predict their risk of lung cancer.
