AI weather forecasts up to 1,000 times more efficient 

Computer-driven advances have 'completely upended' storm prediction and 'saved countless lives' globally, according to leading Irish academic 

In the early 2020s, the margin of error in tracking an Atlantic storm was about 100km. According to Andrew Parnell from UCD’s Aimsir research centre, AI has cut that to below 50km. Picture: Met Éireann

Weather forecasting has become 1,000 times more efficient because of new artificial intelligence (AI) systems, with advances saving lives, a leading expert will tell politicians.

Professor Andrew Parnell, director of UCD’s Aimsir research centre, will outline how weather forecasting has been “completely upended” by AI over the past three to four years, when he appears before the joint Oireachtas committee on AI.