New report provides the first guidance for responsible use of AI across disaster preparedness, response, and recovery to help save lives and protect communities.

NEW YORK, Aug. 4, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Every day, people across the emergency management community make decisions that can mean the difference between safety and tragedy. As natural disasters become more frequent, intense, and costly, those decisions are becoming increasingly complex as responders must process more information, coordinate across more agencies and partners, and act faster than ever before. Today, the AI for Disasters + Emergencies (AIDE) Initiative, led by the Markle Foundation in collaboration with Aspen Digital and RAND, released AI for Disasters + Emergencies: A Way Forward (the AIDE Report), a first-of-its-kind assessment for advancing the responsible use of AI across the emergency management community.

Drawing on research from emergency management practitioners and technology experts, the AIDE Report provides guidance for responsibly applying AI to enhance decision-making, build organizational capacity, and foster the cross-sector partnerships needed to better protect people and communities.

“One of the most important opportunities for AI is unlocking its capacity to serve the public good by helping communities become safer and more resilient,” said Ellen V. Futter, President of the Markle Foundation. “The AIDE Initiative seeks to activate and accelerate a path toward responsible AI adoption in one of society’s most critical areas of need: managing natural disasters. Used responsibly, AI has the potential to empower emergency managers with more complete information, to better and more quickly inform human driven decision-making to save lives and protect communities.”

The AIDE Report recommends six interconnected actions that will guide AIDE’s next phase of work: the AIDE Summit, Education Program, the AIDE Playbook, Capacity-Building Pilots, Research, and the AIDE Alliance. Collectively, these actions focus on building organizational capacity, engaging civil society, and accelerating the responsible use of AI across the emergency management community.

The AIDE Report includes research conducted by Aspen Digital and RAND, which together provide the evidence base for its recommendations:

• Practitioner Perspectives and the Potential of AI in Emergency Management, by Aspen Digital
  Drawing directly from the experiences and perspectives of emergency management practitioners, this report explores where AI can provide the greatest value, what barriers stand in the way of responsible adoption, and what organizations need to effectively use these tools while keeping humans in the loop.

• AI and the Future of Emergency Management: Market Supply and Adoption Pathways, by RAND
  This report examines today’s AI landscape for emergency management, evaluates adoption conditions, and identifies opportunities to better align emerging technologies with the needs of the emergency management community.

The AIDE Initiative will convene leaders in emergency management, technology, government, business, academia, volunteer organizations, and community groups through the AIDE Summit to strengthen partnerships, share lessons learned, and identify opportunities for collective action that help communities better prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters.

Download the AIDE Report
The AIDE Report, including the research conducted by Aspen Digital and RAND, is available at: www.AIDEinitiative.org/reports/ 

About the AIDE Initiative:
The AI for Disasters + Emergencies (AIDE) Initiative is a data-driven, multi-sector, nonpartisan effort led by the Markle Foundation in collaboration with Aspen Digital, a program of the Aspen Institute, and RAND. AIDE brings together leaders from emergency management, technology, government, business, academia, volunteer organizations, and community groups across the country to identify the ways artificial intelligence can help communities better prepare for, respond to, and recover from natural disasters. Through research, expert engagement, education, and pilot initiatives, AIDE is working to help emergency managers better understand where AI can create value, strengthen decision-making, and improve outcomes for the people and communities they serve.

Media Contact:
Media@AIDEinitiative.org

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SOURCE Markle Foundation