Coronavirus: Pakistan introduces AI for area-based infection risk ratings

ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to Prime Minister Imran Khan on Health, Dr Faisal Sultan, on Friday announced that Pakistan has successfully developed an artificial intelligence (AI) system to ascertain areas and their respective coronavirus risk rating and divide them accordingly.

The video-based risk detection technology developed by the company Love For Data has helped the National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC) and Pakistan Army in measuring risk at shops and cattle markets, the premier's aide said.

Explaining about how it works, Dr Sultan said the AI analyses mask adherence, social distancing, and gender detection, along with 10 other variables.

These are then used to "assist district authorities to strengthen their SOP implementation and adopt a localised strategy to prevent [COVID-19] spread".

Images shared by Dr Sultan showed people marked in green boxes keeping the required distance, whereas those marked in red boxes were seen to be standing too close to others.

Pakistan has claimed success in curbing the coronavirus pandemic, with a little over 15,932 active cases and 265,215 recoveries.

PM Imran Khan has time and again credited the decline in cases to the federal government's "smart lockdown" policy — restrictions imposed in coronavirus hotspots.

The country has recorded a total of 287,300 overall coronavirus cases with 6,153 deaths, according to official figures by the government.