---
title: "Data Firm Says Its AI Predicts Where Next COVID-19 Spike Will Be"
description: "An AI by a risk detection firm was able to predict where the next spike in coronavirus cases will be in the UK and US by analyzing social media posts."
date: "2020-04-09"
modified: "2020-04-09"
authors:
  - name: "Victor Tangermann"
    job_title: "Senior Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor"
url: "https://futurism.com/firm-ai-predicts-next-covid19-spike"
categories:
  - "Artificial Intelligence"
tags:
  - "artificial intelligence"
  - "coronavirus"
  - "covid19"
  - "health"
---

# Data Firm Says Its AI Predicts Where Next COVID-19 Spike Will Be

![An AI by a risk detection firm was able to predict where the next spike in coronavirus cases will be in the UK and US by analyzing social media posts.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/firm-ai-predicts-next-covid19-spike.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Images via Pixabay/Victor Tangermann\</em\>*

An artificial intelligence created by New York-based risk detection firm Dataminr was able to predict where the next spike in coronavirus cases will be in the UK and US by analyzing social media posts, [*The Next Web* reports](<https://thenextweb.com/neural/2020/04/09/ai-predicts-where-coronavirus-cases-will-spike-next/>).

According to the [company's website](<https://www.dataminr.com/covid19-us>), "growth in clusters of eyewitness, on-the-ground, first-hand public social media posts on COVID-19" allowed their algorithm to detect "hotspots 7-15 days prior to exponential growth in COVID-19 official case count."

These social media posts include "posts ranging from people indicating they tested positive, people indicating they are experiencing symptoms, people indicating they have been exposed but not tested, first-hand accounts of confirmed cases" and so on.

Dataminr also predicted future spikes in 14 different US states. Seven days later, all 14 states were hit hard by the coronavirus, *TNW* reports.

"These kinds of posts appear to be a leading indicator of where case count may be spiking in the future," Dataminr CEO Ted Bailey [told *Business Insider*](<https://www.businessinsider.com/social-media-may-show-where-virus-will-strike-next-2020-4>).

The analysis of social media for predicting outbreaks could allow governments to better prepare for the next big crisis.

But any predictions by these kinds of systems have to be taken with [a massive grain of salt](<https://futurism.com/neoscope/ai-save-us-coronavirus>). No artificial intelligence in the world can verify with 100 percent accuracy the validity of the claims social media users are making about tests being positive, or relatives showing symptoms.

## Author
I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/vtanger.bsky.social>)