AI Has Overwhelmed Every Weather Application

You may have observed a surge of AI capabilities in your weather app recently. As tech companies rush to integrate artificial intelligence into their offerings, even the weather app is getting an upgrade.

The Weather Company, which runs the Weather Channel, has just launched a redesigned version of its Storm Radar app. This update includes an AI-driven Weather Assistant that allows users to customize their view of forecasts and weather maps, switching between different layers like radar, temperature, and conditions such as wind and lightning.

Additionally, it can connect with other applications, such as your calendar, to provide text alerts and weather summaries that align with your daily activities. For those who enjoy a nostalgic touch, you can even give it a voice reminiscent of a classic radio weatherman. Like most weather apps, it sources its data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Weather Service (NWS).

The app is priced at $4 per month and is currently available only on iOS, although an Android version is expected in the future.

“We aimed to create an experience that elevates the weather experience for everyone, from casual users to dedicated storm chasers,” says Joe Koval, a senior meteorologist at the Weather Company. “If you’re seeking guidance on when the weather will be suitable for walking your dog tomorrow, you no longer have to sift through various weather data elements to find the answer.”

Of course, you can already access weather information on your phone. Both Android and iOS devices prominently display weather data alongside the time. Google and Apple have integrated their weather apps directly into their smartphones. Recently, AI features have been added to provide insights and summaries about upcoming weather.

However, there’s no shortage of third-party weather apps, including Storm Radar, Carrot Weather, Rain Viewer, and Acme Weather, developed by the creators of the former Dark Sky app. New apps like Rainbow Weather aim to prioritize AI. Additionally, weather services are being incorporated directly into AI chatbots, such as Accuweather, which has recently launched an app in OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

“Everyone has their own idea of what they want in a weather app—what data they find interesting and how they wish it to be presented,” says Adam Grossman, co-founder of the DarkSky app. “How can you create a single weather app that caters to everyone’s needs?”

DarkSky, one of the most popular weather apps for iOS, was acquired by Apple in 2020 and integrated into its Apple Weather service. Grossman subsequently left Apple to establish Acme Weather, aiming to offer a weather prediction service that conveys the uncertainties inherent in forecasting.

“No forecast is infallible,” Grossman explains. “That’s an aspect that traditional weather apps have struggled to address. We are focused on figuring out how to integrate that context into our offerings.”

Weather data typically comes from government sources like NOAA and global weather services, which gather information from satellites, radar, balloons, and ground instruments. This data feeds into weather prediction models that simulate atmospheric physics. While these predictions are often produced using resource-heavy supercomputers, machine learning models have streamlined this processing, allowing for quicker predictions—though sometimes at the cost of accuracy, which can be mitigated by comparing multiple models.

Apps like Storm Radar and Acme Weather interpret this wealth of information by validating and compiling the models, assisting in the creation of high-resolution maps and visual representations of the data, an area where AI proves particularly beneficial.