Weather alert system taps tech, folklore

"Mazu, protect our voyage on the deep," go the lyrics of a timeless Chinese folk song that is a plea to the sea goddess Mazu. "Safe journey out, safe return ashore."

Embedded in this song is the soulful bond between local fisherfolk and the sea goddess who, legend has it, was born on the shores of Meizhou Island in Putian, Fujian province.

Today, in the digital era, this ancient heritage has found a new, high-tech anchor.

On the island, which has 30 kilometers of coastline and is home to over 1,000 fishing boats, locals no longer rely on prayers to weather storms. Instead, they find safety at their fingertips through a smart app that instantly decodes real-time winds, wave heights and tidal patterns.

For Lin Haifang, a veteran mariner with a decade of island life under his belt, a simple app alert triggers his typhoon routine. He hauls up oyster shell strings, lashes down kelp rafts and steers his boat to shelter early. Even amid choppy seas and weak signals, the Beidou Navigation Satellite System beams alerts directly to his palm.

"It feels as if Mazu puts the sea conditions right in my hand," he said of his early preparations, which keep his annual losses down and his income steady.

Action plan proposed

With the increasing frequency of extreme weather, the United Nations launched the Early Warnings for All initiative in 2022 to close gaps and protect everyone on the planet. China became the first to answer the call, proposing an action plan in 2024 and launching an intelligent meteorological early warning solution in 2025 named MAZU — an acronym denoting Multi-hazard Alert, Zero-gap and Universal.

The system, deployed in seven countries, blends artificial intelligence forecasting models, data from Fengyun meteorological satellites, cloud computing and ground observations to deliver highly customized services.

President Xi Jinping announced on July 17 that China will bring the AI-powered meteorological warning system MAZU to 30 countries over the next five years to safeguard homes around the world.

He made the remarks while addressing the opening ceremony of the 2026 World AI Conference and High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance in Shanghai, calling for joint efforts to build a just and equitable global AI governance system.

"All countries should take a people-centered approach and develop AI for the positive and for good. We should ensure that AI is an important driver for shared prosperity and common security," he said.

Effective cooperation

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who attended the meeting, praised the initiative, saying that the MAZU system could be one of the most important instruments for making international cooperation effective in protecting people and property.

Zhang Xingying, director of the China Meteorological Administration's Department of International Cooperation, said the MAZU system is a perfect combination of fine traditional Chinese culture, AI and cutting-edge technology.

"Naming the system after the Chinese goddess of marine weather reflects a unique touch of Chinese romance and demonstrates our cultural confidence," he said.

In his view, Mazu's legendary helpers, the Thousand-Mile Eye and the All-Hearing Ear, are reflected in today's meteorological tools, with weather satellites and radar being the eye, and AI and physical models used to forecast climate disasters serving as the ear.

"The core essence of the MAZU system goes beyond exporting China's early-warning capabilities," he said. "More important, it is about working with global partners to co-build a public safety solution for the long run."

"This reflects the enduring spirit of the Chinese nation — centered on virtue, benevolence and profound love — which remains vibrant after thousands of years, and also highly aligns with President Xi's vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity," Zhang added.

According to tradition, Mazu, the Chinese goddess of marine weather and maritime safety, was a Song Dynasty (960-1279) fisherwoman named Lin Mo, from Mei­zhou Island, who was later deified.

Revered for her ability to predict weather, she died at age 28 during a mission to rescue fisherfolk from treacherous storms and was deified as Mazu, meaning benevolent mother. She is often portrayed as carrying a lantern to light the stormy seas, and was long credited with calming storms and guiding ships home.

Belief in Mazu eventually was spread along maritime trade routes by Chinese seafarers and grew into a global bond, with over 11,000 temples and 300 million followers across 50 countries.

During his tenure in Fujian, Xi actively promoted the protection of Meizhou Island and its unique Mazu culture. He planted trees on the island to protect its environment and allocated 2 million yuan ($297,500) to support the Mazu Square project to accommodate larger crowds, after he learned that the project's construction faced a tight budget.

He said after a visit to the island that Mazu culture reflects the character of the Chinese nation, and its exchange and dissemination across the globe can help build a positive image of the Chinese people around the world.

Spiritual asset

Inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009, Mazu culture now serves as a shared spiritual asset along the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.

As her golden statue travels for international processions and thousands of overseas people return to her birthplace each year, this ancient heritage remains a living bridge for global fellowship.

Ke Li‌, deputy director of Putian University's Mazu Culture Research Institute, said, "The core spirit of Mazu culture aligns perfectly with the philosophy of the early-warning solutions, rooted in a shared commitment to putting people's safety first."

The system also reflects Mazu's spirit of universal beneficence — echoing the goal of protection for everyone regardless of geography or background — and mirrors her ancient wisdom of foresight, blending traditional weather forecasting with modern rapid-response mechanisms, Ke said.

Reflecting this spirit, the MAZU system has become a widely sought-after global public good. More than 40 national meteorological agencies are already using MAZU's cloud-based services, while customized versions of the system have been deployed in Pakistan, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Jordan, Mongolia, the Solomon Islands and Sri Lanka, according to the China Meteorological Administration.

Nestled on one of the world's busiest maritime trade routes in East Africa, Djibouti has become a critical proving ground for the platform. An upgraded version of the MAZU system will be put into operation by the end of this year, which will sharpen its local forecast resolution from 9 km to 3 km.

"MAZU 2.0 is very useful because we have several seaports on the coast," said Mohamed Ismail Nour, director-general of the Djibouti National Meteorological Agency, who expects to deepen port and shipping weather cooperation for safer maritime operations.