Google is expanding its flood forecasting capabilities to 80 countries as part of its efforts to address climate change using AI technology. The Flood Hub platform now covers territories with the highest percentages of population exposed to flood risk, benefiting 460 million people globally. Flood Hub provides timely and locally relevant flood data and forecasts up to 7 days in advance, an improvement from last year’s 48-hour forecast. The platform uses publicly-available data sources and combines the Hydrologic Model and the Inundation Model to predict the amount of water flowing in rivers and the areas to be affected. Google also plans to make flood forecasting alerts available in Search and Maps. Additionally, the company collaborates with organizations to establish offline alerting networks in communities vulnerable to floods to amplify the reach of Flood Hub’s warnings.

source update: Google announces expansion of Flood Hub to 80 countries