A leading Saudi university has started employing artificial intelligence to help preserve Red Sea fish species and assess their sustainability.

Through its innovative scientific research and various data-based methods, the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology is using algorithms to analyze masses of statistics about fish populations, fishing practices, and environmental factors.

Thuwal-based KAUST aims to determine how sustainable the fisheries are, while applying techniques such as machine learning to past data to create predictive models that forecast future stock levels.

Saudi Arabia currently imports around 60 percent of its seafood, but the government is ramping up efforts to become self-sufficient and has already invested heavily in aquaculture to supplement the declining catch from Red Sea fisheries.