Utilization of technologies such as cloud, AI, and blockchain for developers
Application Development Competition Held for Natural Disaster Preparedness and Response

At the VivaTech conference held in Paris on May 24, IBM announced the “Call for Code Global Challenge,” a project to solve one of the most urgent social problems, natural disasters, together with developers from startups, schools, and companies.

In her keynote address, IBM Chair Ginni Rometty emphasized that the technology industry must participate more actively in creating a better future, stating that through the 'Call for Code Global Challenge,' developers around the world will be able to contribute to solving social challenges by leveraging cloud, AI, blockchain, and IoT technologies. To this end, IBM plans to provide IBM technology and invest $30 million over the next five years.

Chairwoman Ginni Rometty further emphasized, “IBM believes that technology can play a significant role in making this world a better place to live and realizing the happiness of the many, not just the few,” adding, “The shared goal we aim to achieve through this ‘Call for Code Global Challenge’ is to help those in need and build a better future.”



Recognizing the limitations of existing disaster prediction and response methods, the UN has been seeking innovative ways to improve the system to predict threats more accurately and respond and recover more quickly. The Red Cross has also mobilized its international network and strived to carry out various relief activities for disaster victims to minimize damage on the ground. IBM and the David Clark Curze Foundation plan to actively support these humanitarian activities of the UN Office for Human Rights and the Red Cross through the 'Call for Code Global Challenge'.

Laurent Sauveur, Head of External Relations at the UN Office for Human Rights, expressed his expectations, stating, “I believe that technology can be a powerful tool for promoting human rights and creating a more just society,” and added, “This IBM-led project is an opportunity to find answers on how technology can help the most vulnerable groups and those at risk of having their human rights violated during humanitarian crises.”

Developers participating in the 'Call for Code Global Challenge' will develop new applications that help address the overall vulnerabilities of society by finding short- and long-term natural disaster prevention measures, rapidly providing necessary medical services in disaster situations, and restoring medical and various critical basic services even in chaotic situations.

Examples include an application that guides pharmacies to increase stocks of antibiotics, insulin, bottled water, and vaccines when weather-related disasters are anticipated, an application that uses visual recognition technology to assess the impact of seismic activity, and an application that shortens compensation claim processing times to facilitate faster recovery and reconstruction.

IBM plans to invest a total of $30 million over the next five years in this project to provide tools, technical support, code, and expert training for developers.