In Bangladesh, Google AI helps deliver cash before floods

Farmers on Jamira, a tiny island on Bangladesh’s flood-prone Jamuna River, are used to warring with the river that’s eating their land.

Next year, they’ll have one more weapon in their arsenal: cash payments from the international nonprofit GiveDirectly delivered days before a flood hits. The group uses Google’s artificial intelligence-based flood forecasting to identify at-risk villagers.

This flips the traditional humanitarian model – where aid is delivered to entire regions after a flood – on its head. GiveDirectly offers support before disaster strikes, using AI to pinpoint the villages likely to be affected.

“Our goal is to test whether timely support in the form of unconditional cash transfers enables families to act on early warnings and reduce the impact of flooding,” Abir Ahmed