On November 4, 2025, a quiet revolution in environmental technology took root with the launch of OlmoEarth, a new open, no-code artificial intelligence platform developed by the Allen Institute for AI (Ai2) in Seattle. The nonprofit research lab, founded in 2014 by the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, unveiled a tool that promises to change how conservationists, scientists, and governments tackle the planet’s most urgent ecological crises—from deforestation and crop failure to wildfire risk—without needing deep pockets or advanced technical skills.
OlmoEarth’s arrival comes at a pivotal moment for the Amazon Basin, where environmental crime and climate change continue to threaten the world’s largest rainforest. Just a day before the platform’s debut, Brazilian police, backed by Interpol, carried out one of the largest coordinated crackdowns on illegal gold mining in the region’s history. According to the Associated Press, authorities destroyed hundreds of dredges along the Madeira River, striking a blow against criminal networks that have long fueled deforestation and environmental degradation. The timing of these two events highlights a growing convergence: robust law enforcement on the ground, and cutting-edge technology from above, both aimed at preserving fragile ecosystems.
Until recently, the idea that small nonprofits or local governments could harness the power of artificial intelligence to monitor vast landscapes sounded almost fanciful. Proprietary platforms like Google Earth AI have shown what’s possible when satellite imagery meets advanced analytics, but those systems are often closed, costly, and require significant technical expertise. For most organizations working on the front lines of conservation, access to such tools has been out of reach.
Enter OlmoEarth. The platform is built to democratize access to AI, making it possible for anyone—regardless of their technical background—to analyze and predict planetary changes in real time. Drawing on millions of Earth observations from satellites, radar, and environmental sensors, including open data from NASA, NOAA, and the European Space Agency, OlmoEarth empowers users to track everything from forest health to crop yields, and even the subtle shifts in moisture that can signal wildfire risk.
“Organizations find it extremely challenging to build the pipelines from all these satellites and sensors, just even basic things are very difficult to do—a model might need to connect to 40 different channels from three different satellites,” Patrick Beukema, who leads the Ai2 team behind OlmoEarth, told Fortune. “We’re just trying to democratize access for these organizations who work on these really important problems and super important missions—we think that technology should basically be publicly available and easy to use.”
From the outset, OlmoEarth has focused on real-world impact. In Kenya, researchers are using the platform to map crops and bolster food security, while in the Amazon, conservationists are now able to spot deforestation in near real time. In early tests conducted in mangrove regions, the platform achieved a remarkable 97% accuracy rate, cutting processing time in half and enabling governments to take swift action to protect vulnerable coastlines.
One of the most striking applications of OlmoEarth’s AI is in wildfire risk assessment—a challenge that has grown more urgent as climate change drives more frequent and intense blazes around the world. Traditionally, measuring forest moisture, a key variable in predicting fire risk, has been a laborious and costly process. “Currently, what people do is go out into the forest and collect sticks or logs and weigh them pre-and-post dehydrating them, to get one single measurement of how wet it is at the location,” Beukema explained. “Park rangers do this work, but it’s extremely expensive and arduous to do.”
OlmoEarth flips that script. By training its AI model on years of expert field data—paired with satellite observations from dozens of channels, including radar, infrared, and optical imagery—the platform can now estimate forest moisture from space. The result is a continuously updated, near real-time map of moisture levels across entire regions. “Hopefully this helps the folks on the front lines doing this important work,” Beukema said. “That’s our goal.”
Behind the scenes, the development of OlmoEarth reflects a broader shift in the AI landscape. Where once the field was dominated by proprietary systems and well-funded tech giants, there’s now a growing movement toward open, accessible tools that serve the public good. The Allen Institute for AI, with its nonprofit mission and commitment to open science, is at the forefront of this wave. By designing OlmoEarth as a full, end-to-end platform—one that handles everything from ingesting raw satellite data to delivering actionable insights—it’s breaking down barriers that have long kept advanced technology out of reach for those who need it most.
The platform’s launch also comes amid heightened scrutiny of environmental crime in the Amazon Basin. On November 3, 2025, Brazilian police, in one of their largest coordinated efforts to date, destroyed hundreds of illegal gold-mining dredges along the Madeira River. The operation, supported by Interpol, targeted criminal networks whose activities have contributed to rampant deforestation, mercury pollution, and violence against Indigenous communities. As reported by the Associated Press, this crackdown is part of a broader effort to restore the rule of law and protect the Amazon’s biodiversity.
For many experts, the intersection of enforcement and technology offers hope. While police actions can disrupt criminal operations in the short term, long-term success depends on the ability to monitor and respond to environmental threats as they emerge. Platforms like OlmoEarth, which can detect changes in forest cover or moisture in near real time, are poised to become essential tools for governments, NGOs, and local communities alike.
It’s not just about catching bad actors, either. By making advanced analytics accessible to everyone, OlmoEarth enables proactive management of natural resources. In Kenya, for example, the platform is helping researchers and officials strengthen food security by mapping crops and predicting potential failures before they happen. In mangrove regions—vital buffers against coastal erosion and storm surges—the technology is allowing for rapid assessment and targeted interventions, potentially saving both ecosystems and livelihoods.
There are, of course, challenges ahead. Even the most sophisticated AI platform is only as good as the data it receives, and many parts of the world still lack comprehensive environmental monitoring. Additionally, the fight against illegal mining, logging, and other forms of environmental crime requires sustained political will and international cooperation—technology alone can’t solve these problems.
Still, the momentum is building. As Sharon Goldman of Fortune notes, the launch of OlmoEarth signals a new era in the “AI for good” movement, one where advanced tools are no longer the exclusive domain of tech giants or wealthy governments. By putting powerful analytics in the hands of those on the front lines, platforms like OlmoEarth could help tip the balance in favor of the planet.
In the Amazon, where the stakes could hardly be higher, the combination of bold enforcement and innovative technology offers a rare glimmer of hope. For the scientists, park rangers, and community leaders fighting to protect the world’s largest rainforest, help may finally be arriving—not just from the ground, but from the sky above.