Mumbaikars will now be able to access and interpret weather and monsoon winds of their own accord, or so is the idea behind ‘WeatherEx’ — an AI-powered weather intelligence platform spearheaded by IIT Bombay alumni. While the platform is made to help Mumbaikars access different forecasting modules, and help interpret the weather at different scales, it has also brought in a customised model for Mumbai for the first time.

Early predictions

The researchers state that heavy rain spells of early July were already called out by the platform accurately. “A large part of our platform is to also help with flash flood predictions to help the municipal body prepare well in advance. Often, the weather and rain forecasting bodies raise an alarm only a few hours before heavy showers hit. Now, we hope to work with the BMC to help with prior preparedness as well,” said Dr Akshay Sunil, a research alumnus from Powai’s IIT and a climate-tech expert heading WeatherEx.