Experts are warning about a potential new pandemic, which they’ve nicknamed “Disease X,” and say it’s likely to happen within the next 10 years. Predictions suggest there’s a 25% chance of another global outbreak like Covid-19.
The next pandemic could be caused by a new strain of flu, coronavirus, or even something we’ve never seen before. With the memory of Covid-19, which affected millions, the idea of another pandemic is concerning. But, can AI help us handle it better?
Researchers at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) are working on an AI system to help predict future pandemics. This project is part of the US National Science Foundation’s Predictive Intelligence for Pandemic Prevention.
Using AI to analyze billions of social media posts, especially from platforms like X (formerly Twitter), the system will look for early warning signs of outbreaks.
According to Prof Chen Li from UCI, this tool can help detect early signals of future pandemics and even predict how policies might affect virus spread.
However, a challenge is that data from outside the U.S. is not always available. This means the tool might not work equally well in other parts of the world.
Other AI tools, like EVEScape, developed by Harvard Medical School and the University of Oxford, are making predictions about new virus variants. This tool has already correctly predicted changes in viruses like HIV and flu. The AI can also help vaccine manufacturers figure out which virus mutations might happen, making it easier to develop effective vaccines.
Companies like AstraZeneca are also using AI to speed up the discovery of new antibodies, which can be used to create vaccines.
By using AI, they can cut the time needed to identify useful antibodies from three months to just three days. This helps prepare for future pandemics, where fast vaccine development is crucial.
Despite all these advancements, experts caution that AI is just a tool. As Dr. Philip AbdelMalik from the World Health Organization (WHO) points out, AI can help detect signs of danger early on, but it’s not a solution by itself.
The AI is only as good as the data it receives, so if it’s fed bad or biased information, it won’t give reliable predictions. Trust and cooperation among people remain the most important factors in preventing and handling the next pandemic.
In the end, while AI has made us more prepared than we were before Covid-19, technology alone isn’t enough.
As experts told BBC, the key to handling the next pandemic will be building trust, sharing information, and working together globally.
This human connection might be even more important than the most advanced AI systems .
Credit : BBC
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1epnnd3l5jo