The International Research Centre on Artificial Intelligence (IRCAI), a UNESCO-affiliated organization hosted on the data science platform Zindi, and the Amazon Sustainability Data Initiative (ASDI) at Amazon Web Services Inc. (AWS), in collaboration with the NAIXUS network of excellence, announced the winners of the AI for Equity Challenge.
The AI for Equity Challenge aligns with the Amazon Sustainability Data Initiative’s (ASDI) mission to accelerate sustainability research, innovation, and collaboration by helping to minimize the cost and time needed to acquire and analyze high-value datasets.
The challenge focused on equitable futures at the intersection of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 3 (Good Health and Well-being), 5 (Gender Equality), and 13 (Climate Action). The 6-month worldwide virtual tournament helped academics use modern cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) to develop novel solutions for human health issues exacerbated by the climate catastrophe.
The competition was judged and mentored in collaboration with NAIXUS, a network of AI and sustainable development research organizations.
The organizations selected in the first round were the Kuyesera AI Lab at the Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences and the Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) in Tanzania.
The Kuyesera AI Disaster Damage and Displacement Challenge asked participants to help communities recover from climate disasters by detecting damaged infrastructure using aerial imagery. The winner was Mark Landry of the USA, who leveraged a novel use of vision large models (VLMs) for detecting damaged infrastructure to secure his place.
The SUA Outsmarting Outbreaks Challenge called on experts to predict outbreaks of waterborne diseases in Tanzania that have a disproportionate impact on women and children. The winner was Yisak Berhanu of Ethiopia, who used simple LightGBM models with clever data aggregations to set himself apart.
“I’m incredibly grateful for this opportunity, and I believe this solution can make a tangible difference to people’s lives in Tanzania,” said Yisak Berhanu. “I’m ready to collaborate with health organizations, offering my time and expertise to ensure a smooth deployment process, assist with any necessary adjustments, and help maximize the solution’s positive impact on the communities it’s designed to serve.”
“We are incredibly proud of this partnership and the ingenuity demonstrated by the winners of the AI for Equity Challenge,” said Davor Orlic, COO at IRCAI. “These groundbreaking solutions not only showcase the transformative power of AI but also highlight the vital role of collaboration in tackling global challenges.
At IRCAI, we are committed to bridging the gap between research, industry, and communities of practice in AI, ensuring that innovations translate into real-world impact. Moreover, the challenge ultimately afforded us the opportunity to introduce the remarkable achievements of African AI practitioners to the broader AI communities in Europe, fostering deeper connections and shared progress.”
