Covid-19 pandemic has brought out the need of researching the predictability of viral pandemics. Timely prevention measures require accurate information of the spread of the viruses. Kajaani University of Applied Sciences (KAMK) is developing a platform for predicting the spread on pandemics, with the help of artificial intelligence. The Pandemic Platform is a project to build a pilot solution for modelling the spread of coronavirus, using a super computer, AI and research data provided by iSTOC and Nordlab.

The existing data combined with information about factors that affect the spreading of viruses, like movements of people and the weather conditions, provide statistics about the spread of the virus and the increasing or decreasing of the volume of the pandemic in certain area.

Timo Lehikoinen, the project manager of Pandemic Platform, says that there are several different methods for measuring the coronavirus infections, but for utilizing the measurements wider, a comprehensive database is needed. “A system based on AI and data analytics offers excellent possibilities for researching the spread of pandemics from geographic and time perspective”.

iSTOC is happy to participate in this important research process. “The Pandemic Platform project produces valuable research information, leading to better understanding of the spreading models and predictability of viral infections, and it will further strengthen our existing capabilities related to predictive analytics”, says Jarmo Järvenpää, CEO of iSTOC.

Read the whole article about the project in KAMK websites (in Finnish)

Cover image by Pete Linforth from Pixabay