How Google’s AI Weather Forecasts Became My Unexpected Farming Assistant

Insights At a Glance:

• Google’s AI-powered short-term weather forecasts are now live in Africa, including Kenya.
• They’re incredibly useful for everyday planning—especially for farmers and outdoor workers.
• Part of broader AI efforts by Google, including flood alerts, education tools, and maternal health support across the continent.

---

I never thought I’d be the kind of person who’d obsess over clouds. But somewhere between raising goslings, ducklings, and chicks in Vihiga County and dashing to the market for farm supplies, I found myself repeatedly looking up. Not at the sky, but at Google Search.

Because when you’re doing small-scale farming in Western Kenya, the weather isn’t just a topic. It’s a threat, a blessing, and sometimes even an ambush. One minute you’re letting your little birds enjoy the sun in their cages on the grass, the next, you’re sprinting through the village with raindrops chasing you, praying your chicks don’t drown before you return.

Until a few months ago, I had to rely on either old-school guesswork (a.k.a sky-reading) or those chunky weather apps that are more bloated than helpful. Then something changed. Google Search started nailing short-term weather forecasts. Suddenly, I wasn’t just winging it. I could actually plan around the rain.

Turns out, this wasn’t a fluke. Last month, Google officially confirmed what I had already noticed: their AI-powered nowcasting is now live in Africa, including here in Kenya.

Google’s Nowcasting Magic

According to a blog post published in July 2025, Google has been refining its MetNet model—an advanced AI system that uses satellite data and ground observations to generate hyper-local precipitation forecasts.

The model can predict rain within a 5km radius, every 15 minutes, and up to 12 hours ahead. That’s not just fancy tech talk. That’s the difference between making a quick run to the market, or getting caught halfway back with armfuls of farm supplies while your ducklings are out in the open with no umbrella.

The feature is baked directly into Google Search, so you don’t even need to download another app or fiddle with settings. Just search something like “weather in [your location]”, and you’ll see hour-by-hour updates that actually reflect what’s happening in your sky.

And it’s surprisingly accurate. I’ve tested it while juggling errands and baby poultry as seen in the screengrab below. Light showers in 1 hour actually means just that. It’s now the first thing I check before stepping out or stepping my chicks out into the sun.

A Real Win for Farmers and Families

This feature isn’t just handy for people like me with birds and seedlings. It’s a quiet revolution for millions of farmers, boda riders, hawkers, and school kids across Africa who rely on good weather and good judgment to get through the day.

With Google’s AI nowcasting, that judgment just got an upgrade. And credit where it’s due: Google’s teams in Accra and Nairobi were directly involved in bringing this capability to life. They’re not just throwing code over the wall from Silicon Valley. They’re building and piloting tools right here in collaboration with African researchers and institutions.

What Else is Google Cooking in Africa?

While the short-term weather forecasts may have stolen my heart and even saved my birds, Google’s July announcement went far beyond that. Their AI initiatives in Africa are impressively wide-ranging and impactful:

• Education: In Ghana, over 5,000 high school students are now part of AI-powered learning pilots using LearnLM, designed to make lessons more personalized and effective.
• Flood Forecasting: Google’s AI models can now forecast riverine floods up to 7 days in advance across 41 African countries, helping governments and humanitarian agencies plan ahead.
• Maternal Health: In Nigeria and Ghana, AI dashboards are helping authorities map emergency obstetric care access so that no woman has to travel too far when time is critical.
• Infrastructure Planning: With the Open Buildings Dataset, local planners and NGOs are getting insights into how buildings grow and spread, helping them better plan where to place clinics, roads, and services.

All this is part of a broader commitment from Google, which includes launching a new AI Community Center in Accra and investing $37 million into AI research and development across Africa. So yeah, while AI may sound abstract, futuristic, and sometimes overhyped, it’s already helping us do very unfuturistic things like avoid getting rained on while carrying ducklings.

And in a world where global tech often forgets Africa in the roadmap, it’s genuinely encouraging to see tools made with and for African communities, addressing real needs on the ground.

If you haven’t yet checked out the new short-term weather forecasts on Google Search, try it now. Just type “weather” and your location. You might just find your new favorite farming tool and you won’t even need to install anything.