China's 'Sea Goddess' AI Issues Flood and Storm Warnings

China continues to integrate artificial intelligence into daily life, with the latest application being an early warning system for disasters developed by the China Meteorological Administration (CMA). The system, named Mazu, was showcased at the World AI Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai and is designed to provide information for predicting natural disasters such as storms, floods, and other extreme weather events. Mazu is named after the Chinese sea goddess, who in tradition protects sailors at sea. The Mazu system is tasked with monitoring and issuing warnings, integrating data from multiple observation sources, including China’s Fengyun meteorological satellites, and combining a series of AI prediction models such as Fenglei, Fengqing, and Fengshun. You Yang, a staff member at the Shanghai Meteorological Bureau, stated that the jointly developed monitoring and early warning terminal can track meteorological indicators including temperature, pressure, and visibility, as well as receive satellite data. The system has also been adapted for application scenarios in transport, energy, agriculture, and the low-altitude economy. You Yang added that the Mazu system tailors its models according to a country’s geography, infrastructure, and disaster profile. To date, more than 40 countries and regions have used the system via cloud-based access. One example is Djibouti, which received the Mazu-Urban model as a grant from China in July 2025, a multi-hazard prevention system the African nation uses for high-temperature heatwave monitoring and strong wind warnings at ports.