Google’s Android Earthquake Alerts System (AEA) failed to accurately warn people ahead of the 2023 Turkey earthquake, which killed over 55,000 people and injured over 1 lakh. The system underestimated the severity of the first 7.8-magnitude quake, sending only 469 “Take Action” alerts, despite up to 10 million people within 160 km of the epicentre being eligible. Instead, around half a million users were sent a lower-level “Be Aware” warning. The system, which runs on Android devices, is meant to detect ground movement via smartphones and quickly notify users before the strongest shaking arrives. Google claims it continues to improve the system based on learnings from each earthquake. The AEA system is now active in 98 countries and Google claims it has been improved based on learnings from Turkey’s quake.
