HK eyes bigger AI investment, tech predicted heaviest downpour

Hong Kong will double down on its investment in artificial intelligence (AI) after its AI system predicted the recent record-breaking rainfall 10 days in advance.

In early August, the city was brought to a standstill by heavy downpours that shut down schools, roads, and hospitals. According to the Hong Kong Observatory—the city’s weather forecast agency—it recorded over 14 inches of rainfall last August 5, the heaviest on record for a single day in August for 141 years.

However, the city was prepared as its AI-powered systems had predicted the downpour over a week in advance, the Observatory says.

“If we look back, one week before Tuesday, we already have several artificial intelligence models that have started capturing the progress of the particularly heavy rain this time,” its senior scientific officer, He Yuheng, told one outlet.

The Observatory’s AI models still need to be worked on and improved, Yuheng says. In their prediction, they were not entirely accurate in identifying the areas to be affected. The models predicted that some parts of the coast of Guangdong province would be hit by heavy rainfall, but didn’t pinpoint that Hong Kong would be the most affected.

The Observatory began exploring AI in mid-2023; its earliest versions were built atop the Huawei Cloud Pangu-Weather Model, and the forecasts were published on its website. In mid 2024, the department added Fuxi—an AI weather forecasting model developed by Shanghai-based Fudan University—to its arsenal to predict wind speed, humidity, temperature, and rainfall 15 days in advance.

“Our use of artificial intelligence in predicting the weather is still at a preliminary stage,” Yuheng says, but the observatory is making rapid inroads.

Beyond the weather, the department uses the models to predict tropical cyclones. This year alone, cyclones have claimed over 150 lives and caused massive destruction globally. The most devastating was Wipha, which originated in the Philippine Sea and caused devastation in the Philippines, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Vietnam, South China, Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar. It claimed 40 lives in the Philippines and destroyed nearly $900 million in property value.

“The prediction of the path of tropical cyclones by AI seems to be better than traditional methods,” Yuheng says. He noted that AI systems can narrow down the expected impact zone of an impending cyclone to a range of 300km, down from 500km using traditional methods.

South Korea invests $9m in blockchain pilots

Elsewhere, South Korea has allocated over $9 million to support blockchain projects across virtual healthcare, transport, and battery tracking for electric vehicles.

The Ministry of Science and ICT recently announced the investment to integrate blockchain into day-to-day services to boost transparency and efficiency and cut costs. The ministry is working with the Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA) on the initiative, local outlets report.

One of the investments is in a blockchain-powered virtual healthcare service, and it’s spearheaded by the Korea Health Industry Development Institute. The system will integrate the latest advancements in digital healthcare, from telemedicine and digital transcriptions to drug delivery systems and electronic insurance claims, all underpinned by blockchain for security and efficiency.

In Busan, the ministry will invest in a blockchain system to track the lifecycle of electronic vehicle (EV) batteries across production, distribution, usage, and disposal. The project will initially work with 2,500 EVs and their battery manufacturers in the pilot phase before expanding to more vehicles and other regions.

In the first half of the year, EV sales accounted for 20% of all new car sales in South Korea as tax incentives and subsidies push more South Koreans away from fuel-powered cars.

Other blockchain projects receiving the funding target carbon credit trading in the transport industry, ticketing, and the food supply chain.

South Korea invests heavily in emerging tech to compete with runaway leaders in China and the U.S. Last week, it announced a new 500 billion won ($380 million) initiative to support the AI sector. It also established a new task force to champion the sector’s agenda, led by some of its biggest tech firms, from Naver and LG to SK Telecom and NC AI.

In order for artificial intelligence (AI) to work right within the law and thrive in the face of growing challenges, it needs to integrate an enterprise blockchain system that ensures data input quality and ownership—allowing it to keep data safe while also guaranteeing the immutability of data. Check out CoinGeek’s coverage on this emerging tech to learn more why Enterprise blockchain will be the backbone of AI.

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