TechByte: AI Changing the Game for Weather Forecasters

Generative AI is both a hero and a villain depending on the application. On this week’s Techbyte we highlight one area where it could save lives.
Over in Hong Kong, typhoons are a common occurrence. They whip through at rapid rates, causing flood damage, wind damage, and general destruction.
Researchers in the Chinese territory say they’ve developed an AI tool that will help them predict thunderstorms and heavy downpours up to two times faster than current models.
Meanwhile, Google has been working on a similar program. They call it WeatherNext 2. Instead of using predictive algorithms like current weather models, it uses historical data to predict what could happen next based on millions of datapoints.
This doesn’t mean that meteorologists or forecasters are going anywhere, but it does indicate a shift in technology and how we gather data.
The guy in front of the green screen isn’t going anywhere, but his toolbox will be getting a lot heftier in the next few years.