Can Artificial Intelligence Predict the Middle East's Next Conflict?

Feb 28, 2020 | Robert Tollast
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In January 2014, most Iraq analysts knew security in the country was rapidly deteriorating. Beyond general warnings, however, few predicted exactly how bad the situation would become. 

Within six months, a fanatical terrorist group in the form of ISIS would take over a third of the country, embarking on a brutal campaign of violence. By August, the UN declared Iraq a "level 3 emergency" (the worst kind) as 3 million people fled their homes. 

But what if all of this could have been predicted far in advance? Not a general warning that things were getting worse, but rather a detailed prediction outlining the severity of potential conflict and the likely timeline.