- By Tsaone Segaetsho
Diamond exploration and project development company Botswana Diamonds PLC (BOD), listed on both the London AIM and Botswana Stock Exchange and holds exploration licenses in Botswana, has announced that it will start using artificial intelligence (AI) techniques in its mineral exploration and extraction.
BOD Chairperson, John Teeling, announced this week the introduction of AI in search of new diamond discoveries through the Xplore Platform.
The Executive Botswana has traced the innovation of Explore Platform from a UK company called Planetary-AI Limited. Xplore Platform is software that enables targeting of any element based on a plethora of geological and topographic information.
In the recent announcement, BOD said the diamond company will utilise Planetary AI Ltd Xplore mineral prospecting technology, which was developed in collaboration with International Geoscience Services Limited, a system that uses a unique combination of semantic technology with machine learning. Semantic technology is a branch of artificial intelligence focused on understanding and representing the meaning of data, information, and knowledge in a machine-readable format.
“Our mineral database in Botswana is simply vast. Too big for timely analysis by humans. Think of it, over 375,000 kms of geophysical data, and 32 000 drill holes logs. Massive databases are suited to analysis by computer-based large Data Models and Artificial Intelligence techniques which can analyse substantial amounts of data in a short time,” Teeling told BOD shareholders this week.
He said at BOD they feed in the data and create the models from their existing knowledge both theoretical and factual. Teeling further explained that the techniques then produce results. The BOD chairperson said it finds inconsistencies or gaps it adapts.
Teeling also said it is early stages in both our work and the use of the technique in mineral exploration, but the future potential is huge.
“An added exciting bonus for Botswana Diamonds PLC and for Botswana is that the technique will analyse a number of different minerals. We have always believed that there are more diamond deposits to be found under the sand. Now there is the possibility of other deposits being identified,” said Teeling.
BOD’s latest discovery in technology comes right in the backdrop of an international milestone, which was reached between the world of geology and technology. Last year Planetary AI entered a partnership with International Geoscience Services Ltd (IGS), a leading provider of earth-based intelligence to governments worldwide.
According to Planetary AI, the agreement, which was signed in February 2023, made the two entities collaborate to deliver cutting-edge target generation for the mineral exploration and mining industry via the Xplore Platform, which will be implemented by BOD as per the recent announcement. One of the roles of Planetary AI is to offer deep dive analytics, which will be utilised to extract the most out of geological data, old and new, increase efficiency and bring the mining sector into the modern age.
Xplore Platform software’s intelligence is said to be based on over fifty (50) mineral deposit types that are found all around the world which are dependent on factors such as geology, structure, age, mineralogy and specific spatial geological relationships. Furthermore, Xplore is said to be unique in comparison to other types of mineral targeting software as it is backed by real geological mineral deposit intelligence from experts.
