AI project helping women in counties net jobs

Zhang Juan never expected that she would be involved in the field of artificial intelligence and that it would change the lives of her family members.

Two years ago, she returned to her hometown of Jishishan Bao'an, Dongxiang and Sala autonomous county, Gansu province, from Lanzhou, the provincial capital, to work as an AI trainer in the AI Bean Project Digital Industrial Park.

An AI trainer is a person who specializes in data annotation, and the job is one of the most critical in the vast AI industry.

Ant Group, the Ant Public Welfare Foundation and the China Women's Development Foundation jointly launched the AI Bean Project in Jishishan in 2019 to support the employment of women in underdeveloped counties in central and western China.

Wang Zhumei, a staff member of Ant Group, said that the project has established 17 digital employment centers in counties such as Qingjian in Shaanxi province, Tongren in Guizhou province and Shuozhou in Shanxi province.

She said that project has helped over 4,000 people find employment locally, and some of these employment centers have become the largest employers in their areas. Thousands of women have been able to step out of their homes and achieve economic independence through this program.

Jishishan county, which is located in Gansu's Linxia Hui autonomous prefecture, was recently the site of deadly disaster.

In December, the county was struck by a 6.2 magnitude earthquake, resulting in over 100 deaths and hundreds of injuries.

Watch the video to learn more.