AI Helps Save Endangered Plants

AI is helping scientists save plants that are in danger of disappearing. Many plants provide food and medicine. About 40% of plants studied are at risk. New technology helps find and learn about these plants faster. This is important for our planet's health.

Botanists are using AI and digitisation to combat the extinction of vital plants. A report from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, highlights how technology helps track flowering times and identify new specimens. With 40% of assessed plant species at risk, this innovation is crucial for discovering potential medicines and sustainable crops before they vanish.

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, has released a report indicating that the integration of AI and digitisation could be pivotal in the fight against plant extinction. This technology allows scientists to monitor changes in flowering times globally and to identify new specimens rapidly. Alarmingly, about 40% of the 70,000 assessed plant species are at risk of extinction, with many potential new medicines and crops disappearing before they can be documented. The situation for fungi is even more dire, as 90% of an estimated 2 million species remain unknown to science. The hope is that these advancements will facilitate the documentation and protection of biodiversity.