Human-Centered Weather Forecasts initiative

Expanding access to weather forecasts in low- and middle-income countries.

What is Human-Centered Forecasting?

We work with tech companies, academia, governments and other partners to push AI to its limits to deliver tailored forecasts that can improve human lives.

Weather forecasts should be accurate as well as tailored to the specific human needs on the ground, and then delivered at the right time and place to inform decisions—like giving farmers advanced notice of the rainy season. The Human-Centered Weather Forecasts (HCWF) Initiative brings together climate scientists, artificial intelligence (AI) experts and economists to build and evaluate weather forecasts that can target what citizens need to know, leveraging the power of AI. The interdisciplinary team then works withs low- and middle-income countries to disseminate forecasts, test dissemination strategies, refine them based on user feedback, and scale them up to improve decision-making.

Featured Project

Forecasting the onset of the Indian monsoon

Researchers are using new advances in artificial intelligence with knowledge of monsoon dynamics to predict the onset of the rainy season for Indian farmers.

What We Do

Benchmarking and AI Model Development

We work with tech companies, academia, and others to push AI to its limits to deliver tailored forecasts that can improve human lives.

Large-Scale Dissemination

We work with partners to help them disseminate tailored weather forecasts, taking a user-focused approach.

Assessing Impact, User Experience

For weather messages to be helpful, users need to understand them. We evaluate what worked, and what didn't.

Forecaster Capacity Building

We work with low- and middle-income countries to strengthen their AI-driven weather forecasting capabilities.

Leadership

Scholar

Pedram Hassanzadeh

Associate Professor, Geophysical Sciences and Computational and Applied Math; Director, AI for Climate Initiative

Scholar

Amir Jina

Assistant Professor, Harris School of Public Policy

Scholar

Michael Kremer

University Professor in Economics, the College, and the Harris School of Public Policy; Director of the Development Innovation Lab; Faculty Director, Development Economics Center at the University of Chicago

Latest News & Insights

News·Mar 30, 2026

University of Chicago and Ethiopia Collaborate to Scale AI-based Weather Forecasts for Farmers

The Human-Centered Weather Forecasts Initiative’s collaboration with the Ethiopian Meteorological Institute will establish an Africa-focused framework for AI-powered weather forecasting and build the local capacity needed to provide farmers with timely and actionable information.

Learn More

News·Feb 23, 2026

Welcoming Katie Kowal as Director for AI for Weather

Kowal—who previously served as a scientist at NOAA—will oversee large-scale projects and research that drives AI advances in weather forecasting, while expanding AI weather models as a tool for global decision-makers.

Learn More

News·Sep 22, 2025

Weather Forecasting Training Program Brings the Power of AI to Low- and Middle-Income Countries

The University of Chicago, AIM for Scale and the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence have launched a first-of-its-kind weather forecast training program to help governments deliver tailored forecasts to meet local agricultural needs—including those of millions of farmers.

Learn More

News·Sep 15, 2025

Artificial intelligence is helping Indian farmers adapt to climate change—forecast accurately predicting an unusual monsoon season reached 38 million

The Indian Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare sent farmers AI-based forecasts that predicted when the monsoon would arrive up to 30 days in advance, allowing farmers to plan ahead. AI allowed forecasts to not only be accurate, but also...

Learn More