AI can help save the climate, but to do so will require major mobilisation in AI research. According to the report “AI in the Service of the Climate” compiled by RISE together with AI Sweden and the Stockholm Resilience Centre on behalf of Vinnova, a clear climate profile is lacking.
– “There are numerous small forums, but no national or international initiative to utilise AI to tackle the climate challenge,” says Sverker Janson, Head of the Applied AI Centre at RISE. “We need to have the equivalent of an ‘Apollo Program’ for climate transition. Concerted effort is needed, otherwise the impact is negligible.”
The report, which is based on surveys and interviews with experts from trade and industry, universities and institutes, indicates that Sweden, with its considerable international expertise in both digitalisation and climate and environmental issues, has an opportunity to become a leader in the field of AI in the service of the climate, especially in the absence of a clear international player able to take a systematic and holistic approach and drive development forward.
Lack of a clear climate profile
However, it is not a given that Sweden will seize this opportunity. Many of the interviewees note that several of Sweden’s AI initiatives, such as the Wallenberg AI, Autonomous Systems and Software programme, as well as international initiatives such as Program and Global Partnership on AI, lack a clear climate and sustainability profile.
The report proposes that the climate challenge should become a pronounced priority in future AI initiatives. Another proposal that would benefit development is to create an arena for expertise in AI, climate and sustainability to encourage collaboration and drive innovation. A third proposal is to develop a national innovation strategy with clear objectives and incentives from authorities and research funders for the development of AI in the field of climate change.
Here at RISE we will take the climate challenge into consideration in all our AI applications
“There is no contradiction in investing in AI and investing in AI for the climate”
Sweden playing an important role in the international AI arena and leading innovation for climate change would be hugely beneficial to trade and industry as well. When asked what potential exists, Erik Wilson, Project Manager at AI Sweden, said:
“The potential is a habitable Earth. Nothing is bigger and more important than the climate challenge.”
In fact, the Vinnova report was barely completed when it was found, in January 2021, that the planet’s oceans and atmosphere both saw record-high temperatures in 2020. Ocean temperatures are rising faster than at any time in the last two thousand years, which in turn accelerates sea level rise and causes more hurricanes, floods, droughts and wildfires.
Sverker Janson at RISE insists that the climate issue must be put at the heart of AI research and AI projects:
“The climate challenge is too important an issue to not adopt that perspective. There is no contradiction in investing in AI and investing in AI for the climate, or in developing AI applications and developing applications for the climate. Here at RISE we will take the climate challenge into consideration in all our AI applications.”
Diverse nature of AI applications
Which AI technology or societal area has the greatest potential for climate transition? This was one of the questions the report aimed to address. However, it has not been possible to produce a clear answer owing to the multifaceted nature of AI applications, with aspects involving everything from climate research, monitoring, emission reductions, climate adaptation, and climate innovation and transformation.
A wide range of possible applications are mentioned in the report:
- AI for improved climate system modelling through, for example, deep machine learning of cloud formation
- AI analysis of a variety of data sources from big cities for improved urban planning, and marine monitoring to protect marine resources and infrastructure
- AI analysis of satellite data to support simultaneous real-time monitoring and decision-making with regard to greenhouse gases, biodiversity, soil changes, wildfires, and so on
- AI-enhanced monitoring and quantification of natural carbon sinks such as peatlands, forests and agricultural landscapes
- AI analysis of corporate sustainability reports to steer capital away from climate-damaging activities
- AI analysis of data related to water resources, water flows and infrastructure to facilitate water planning in a broad sense
- AI for modelling energy use, predictive maintenance in households and other built infrastructure
- Applications of AI technologies for analysis of energy use, transport flows and other sectors contributing to urban climate emissions
- ‘Smart grids’ where AI helps predict supply and demand for renewable energy
- AI models to support transport infrastructure planning, such as for public transport and the electrification of vehicles
- AI-enhanced (climate) risk analysis for the insurance sector with applications in several sectors of society
- AI analyses to improve understanding of extreme weather events in order to support climate adaptation work
- Monitoring food security risks using AI analysis of satellite imagery, climate data and predictive analyses of yields of valuable crops
- AI analysis of data pertaining to the weather, market and agricultural land to assist small farmers with decision-making
- Use AI to create maps able to help plan disaster response efforts, e.g. by extracting information from social media and aerial images. This can also be used for automatic damage assessment by comparing data before and after a natural disaster
- AI analysis to drive circular business models and innovation in materials, design, and infrastructure
- AI as a tool to assist or drive innovation processes in general in both the private and public sectors
- AI tools to speed up the analysis of scientific literature and interdisciplinary insights
- AI analyses to support smart production chains with the aim of finding new creative solutions that reduce resource use
“Awareness of your own contribution to saving the planet”
What can the vast array of climate-focused AI applications mean for trade and industry? Erik Wilson at AI Sweden says:
“It can result in everything from decision-making support and new visualisation tools to an awareness of your own impact and your own contribution to saving the planet. Whether it’s as simple as streamlining your freight transport, choosing more sustainable suppliers, or sharing data with competitors in order to establish common models for determining the best shared climate transformation is up to the operators’ employees and managers to decide. We can get there by having clear goals. Ultimately, the benefits will be carbon neutral companies, healthier staff who feel a greater purpose in their tasks and, of course, a better result in the bottom line.”
Watch the report launch event
AI at RISE – mobilisation for applied AI
The development of artificial intelligence is now progressing so rapidly in all industries and encompassing so many areas – from AI technology to ethics and law – that it is difficult even for experts and specialists to recognise all the opportunities and challenges. Starting in January 2021, the ‘AI at RISE’ initiative will help companies and government agencies to see more potential in the technology, use it more wisely and develop it faster.
