So, we all know by now that AI can do many things. Some of them good, but some of them scary and even detrimental. However, Facebook came up with an AI use that could help an entire continent. Facebook AI maps Africa’s population.
They have a map that shows where the African continent’s 1.3 billion people live. Not only does it go country by country, but it can pinpoint right down to neighborhood by neighborhood. One reason they’re doing this is to help humanitarian organizations reach out to the places they need the most help. Another reason is to help bring Internet access, especially to places in the continent that have little or no access.
But this system is by no means perfect, and far from it. Yes, it tells you the density of a certain area. But of course, it doesn’t tell you who needs more and who needs less. These AI maps tell you nothing about economies, demographics, and computer literacy. Who needs more IT support and IT service? Who already has it? The Facebook AI teams of actual humans check and double check to weed out regional biases. And some of this AI might be wrong. But so far, very few of it is. Because of every 1,000 buildings it picked up, 996 of them were accurate.
Yes, much needs to be done. But this is a huge step up. At least they know where the people are. This way, teams can get there to help and deliver goods and services quicker and with more accuracy. However, there are lots of things to air out. For example, I didn’t see any roads or highways that led to these places. So how are the teams going to get to these places? And which places are in more need? Which African nation do you start with and which city/town and do you start?