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UN and Dataminr partner to use artificial intelligence for humanitarian response

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UN Global Pulse
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(New York and Geneva, 28 May 2019) UN Global Pulse and Dataminr, the leading AI platform for first response, today announced a partnership at the AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva, Switzerland. The partnership will equip thousands of United Nations (UN) personnel with Dataminr’s First Alert product for the public sector.

The partnership advances the Secretary-General’s Strategy on New Technologies, an effort to boost the UN’s uptake of cutting-edge technology and accelerate learning, innovation and entrepreneurship for progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

“UN agencies and personnel around the world need the earliest possible indications of an emerging crisis to respond effectively. Our partnership with Dataminr will help the UN better leverage the power of AI to strengthen our work and help keep UN teams safe,” said Robert Kirkpatrick, Director of UN Global Pulse.

Dataminr founder and CEO, Ted Bailey, said, “Dataminr shares a common vision with our UN partners for a future in which AI and real-time data serve a greater, public good. We are proud to support the UN Secretary-General’s Strategy on New Technologies by deploying Dataminr to accelerate humanitarian and crisis response efforts across the United Nations.”

Teams at the UN have begun using Dataminr to mobilize around unanticipated events, where the health and safety of vulnerable populations -- or UN personnel -- are on the line. One early adopter is the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The office’s use of Dataminr, in alignment with existing policies, is intended to help bring together humanitarian actors to coordinate the most effective response to crises anywhere in the world.

By detecting the earliest signals on risks within thousands of publicly available information (PAI) sources, Dataminr’s advanced AI platform enables rapid mobilization and more effective response. Dataminr often proves to be critical in the wake of cyclones, hurricanes, wildfires, and earthquakes that cause catastrophic damage, destroy crops, and cause disease outbreaks.

“The scope of Dataminr’s detection capability is truly global. Personally, I have already realized the benefits of using Dataminr when working in a number of challenging UN Mission areas around the world,” said Stefan Lemm of the Operations Support Division in the Office of Information and Communication Technology at UNHQ.

About UN Global Pulse

Global Pulse is an initiative of the United Nations Secretary-General on big data and AI.
Its network of innovation labs in New York, Uganda and Indonesia, allow UN System partners to discover and mainstream applications of big data and real-time analytics for sustainable development, humanitarian action, and peace. UN Global Pulse's advocacy agenda focuses on public-private data philanthropy partnerships, and data privacy and policy innovation to enable the responsible and ethical use of new technologies and new data sources for the public good.

About Dataminr

Dataminr is recognized as one of the world’s leading AI businesses. The company’s clients are the first to know about high-impact events and emerging risks so they can manage crises most effectively. Dataminr’s solutions for Corporate Security, PR/Communications, Finance, Public Sector, and News are relied on 24/7 by hundreds of clients in over 70 countries.

Media Contacts

For UN Global Pulse:
Felicia Vacarelu | felicia@unglobalpulse.org | +1.202.906.0774

For Dataminr:
Sehra K. Eusufzai | seusufzai@dataminr.com | +1.646.847.3381
Theresa M. Hardy | theresa.meredith-hardy@madebychameleon.com |+44(0)7515 936883