Amazon has announced a collaboration between its cloud computing division, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and the Jane Goodall Institute to transform 65 years of field notes and film into an AI-powered database. This initiative is supported by $1 million from AWS's Generative AI Innovation Fund, as said in a press release.
According to Amazon’s official press release, AWS is providing funding to help the Jane Goodall Institute digitize its extensive collection of chimpanzee and baboon research data. The project will convert handwritten field notes and analog films into structured digital records using Amazon Bedrock and Amazon SageMaker. The goal is to create an AI-driven, searchable archive that allows scientists and conservationists worldwide to explore over 65 years of research from Gombe National Park, Tanzania, and other sites.
As reported by Smithsonian Magazine, this collaboration represents a significant effort in modern scientific preservation. It enables the digitization of approximately 200,000 handwritten pages and over 1,000 hours of analog film footage documenting primate behavior. Using multimodal large language models on Amazon Bedrock, researchers will be able to perform natural language searches across data spanning six decades. The project also includes integrating historical video, GIS mapping, and soundscape data into one unified research platform.
According to BBC News, the initiative will not only preserve Dr. Jane Goodall’s original fieldwork but also unlock new opportunities for conservation science through AI-assisted pattern recognition. AWS engineers are assisting the Jane Goodall Institute in designing a digital system capable of identifying behavioral trends, migration patterns, and climate-related shifts in chimpanzee populations. The BBC reported that Dr. Lilian Pintea praised the collaboration for "amplifying Dr. Goodall’s mission" and ensuring the Institute’s archives remain accessible to future generations of researchers.
Founded in 1994, Amazon is a global technology company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It operates across e-commerce, logistics, entertainment, and cloud computing through its AWS division. AWS is recognized as the world’s leading cloud provider offering scalable computing solutions that empower businesses and institutions to innovate. Its Generative AI Innovation Fund supports projects applying artificial intelligence to address global challenges in conservation, education, and sustainability.