Google and CSIRO use AI and genomics to restore Australian giant kelp forests

·2026.11.13 02:00

Key point

The partnership aims to replant forests with diverse, heat-tolerant specimens after populations dwindled to 5% of historic numbers.

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Researchers trained a version of Google's open-source AI tool DeepVariant to analyze giant kelp DNA.
The team sequenced 600 wild specimens collected from 40 sites along the Tasmanian coast.
Two high-quality reference genomes for Australian giant kelp were published to support conservation genetics.
The effort is part of Google Australia's Digital Futures Initiative and aims to replant forests with heat-tolerant specimens.
Giant kelp populations in the region have dwindled to 5% of historic numbers due to ocean warming.

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