AI can help save fish, Nature Conservancy CEO says

Driving the news: "Everyone's talking about AI, but they're not talking about AI as a conservation solution," Morris said at an Axios House event. "And I think that's a really important thing that TNC and many organizations are working on."

• She pointed to the Tuna Transparency Pledge, an initiative that her group launched to provide more confidence that industrial tuna fishing activities are sourced legally and sustainably.
• Electronic monitoring through onboard video cameras, GPS, and sensors can monitor and verify fishing activities to provide data needed to sustainably manage tuna and other ocean species.
• "They're actually taking pictures of not only labor practices, but also the bycatch that's coming onto the boats ... That is changing how we are doing fish, and we're using AI to do that. It is actually a game-changer."

Morris said that despite the rapid progress that's been made in using AI, much more needs to be done.

• "All of you that are in AI in the room who are listening, please make sure you're developing AI solutions for nature, because we need to move faster," she told the crowd in Davos.

Zoom in: Despite the Trump administration's pullback on funding conservation efforts, the private sector has helped fill the void, Morris said.

• "As public money shrinks, I think private philanthropists realize they need to step into the breach ... It's integral to their supply chains," she said.