Japan's Toyama Prefecture is launching an AI bear monitoring system, following a recent spate of wildlife encounters.
"Japan Tests AI Bear Warning System to Fight Record Attacks"
The pilot, announced Monday and expected to begin in a few months, monitors live feeds from various security cameras to identify areas where bears have moved too close to human habitat and may pose a risk, according to local media. The AI will step in to categorize moving entities – either as bears or other objects.
The cameras used in the pilot project come from both energy companies and existing government surveillance and disaster management efforts. The government cameras are installed at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism river and highway offices and prefectural facilities.
If successful, other prefectures could also use the AI-enabled system using government, private and commercial cameras.
