Halo Trust, a humanitarian organization based in Scotland, will test artificial intelligence to clear landmines in Ukraine.
The nonprofit, which specializes in removing explosive devices left behind by conflicts, has secured $4 million from Amazon Web Services to use AI to identify landmines through drone imagery.
Drones are critical to Halo’s operations in Ukraine. The organization has flown 542 unmanned aerial systems to collect data from minefields. The UAS fleet has so far built 11 terabytes of data, with more added every day.
Halo also uses satellite imagery to survey large swaths of land, pinpoint minefields and accelerate the clearance process so people can return to their homes safely.
According to Human Rights Watch, 11 of 27 regions in Ukraine are infested with landmines as of June 2023. Nearly 1,000 civilians have died due to anti-vehicle mines.
To aid the removal of explosive remnants of war, Halo will use AI algorithms to analyze drone and satellite imagery. AWS has also provided the organization with cloud computing capabilities to safely store and efficiently process the terabytes of data.
“Technology, and in this case AI specifically, has enormous potential to help solve major global challenges, and we’re looking forward to working with Halo by enabling them to better harness the power of the satellite and drone imagery they are collecting to accelerate the clearing process,” said Dave Levy, vice president for worldwide public sector at AWS and a five-time Wash100 awardee.
The grant also enables Halo to expand its operations to other regions.