UP flood map shows AI importance in disaster preparedness, says UP president

University of the Philippines (UP) President Angelo Jimenez on Thursday underscored the importance of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in various fields including disaster preparedness after the flood map developed by the university garnered over two million downloads amid the onslaught of Super Typhoon Carina. 

At a conference on AI, Jimenez stressed how the use of digital technology over the years can advance national interest, promote national aspirations, and even save people’s lives. 

“When we had Typhoon Carina and they said more water was poured in Typhoon Carina than in Yolanda. The University of the Philippines Resilience Institute created a flood map of Metro Manila and it helped a lot of people,” he said. 

“You know, in two days, that flood map developed by the University of the Philippines got 2.6 million downloads for a simple flood map. It's not the most sophisticated but it was a demonstration of how AI and digital technology can help our people,” he added.

Amid the devastation of Carina in late-July to early August, the UP Resilience Institute shared Project Noah's hazard database map which aims to inform the public about the hazards—including floods, landslides, and storm surges—in their real-time locations.

The application may be accessed here: https://noah.up.edu.ph/know-your-hazards 

Jimenez said that UP developed the Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards or NOAH in 2012. Prior to that, he said an estimated 1,200 people died in the Philippines every year due to natural disasters.

Ten years later or in 2022, he said that with the help of technology like AI, the deaths involving national disasters significantly reduced to 250. 

This is why, according to him, the UP, which is the country’s premier tertiary state institution, is committed to the development of generative AI—a more advanced type of AI. 

“The entire effort of the universe today is preparing for what we want and what we see as a golden age of research and innovation in the country. And we would like to lead that particular movement because we really need research,” Jimenez said. —NB, GMA Integrated News