AI ‘Golden Compass’ for Mineral Exploration
Today, the world stands on the brink of a new gold rush—this time, driven not by pickaxes and pans, but by powerful algorithms, precise calculations, and predictions with up to 90% accuracy. A technology at the intersection of AI and geoinformatics has been developed at Perm National Research Polytechnic University (PNRPU).
Gold-Bearing Russia
Russia, one of the world’s leading gold producers, is constantly seeking more efficient tools for exploration. Traditional gold prospecting methods are labor-intensive, costly, and often imprecise; even in promising regions, success rates rarely exceed 50–60%.
PNRPU researchers have developed a method powered by advanced neural networks trained on massive geological and geophysical datasets.
The AI geologist analyzes rock composition, detects magnetic anomalies, and identifies markers of hidden geological structures. It factors in tectonic faults—zones of increased permeability that often host gold deposits. Crucially, it also takes an economist’s perspective, assessing the profitability of developing a site and filtering out financially unviable targets.
As a result, the system not only identifies potential gold-bearing zones but does so with 90% accuracy for high-yield areas and 89% for transitional zones.
Leaders in Subsurface Innovation
Gold holds both economic and industrial significance. It makes up around 36% of international reserves, provides a hedge against currency volatility, and is indispensable in high-tech sectors—from microelectronics to space exploration.
Mining areas are vast, and many deposits are already significantly depleted. Deep exploration methods have never been more critical, as they allow for pinpointing the most promising sites. Previously, as much as 80% of exploration budgets were spent on ‘failed’ sites. Most deposits lie in permafrost zones, and extraction has shifted from easily accessible alluvial deposits to open-pit and underground mining.
Significantly, Russia has pioneered the first methodology of this caliber, focused on targeted prospecting. The country is not only extracting gold but also creating breakthrough technologies for mining, reinforcing its status as a strategic gold-producing nation and advancing its scientific and technological sovereignty.
This innovation can drastically cut public and corporate exploration losses, reduce investment risks, accelerate discovery timelines, and help preserve and create jobs in the mining sector.
Beyond Gold
PNRPU’s methodology can be adapted for prospecting other minerals, including copper, rare earth elements, and other critical resources for modern electronics and defense industries.
Its greatest potential may lie in exporting the intellectual property itself—especially to resource-rich countries with underdeveloped geological exploration infrastructure. For them, this technology could be the key to rapid and efficient resource development.
Roadmap to the Future
The project received a strong boost after being included in the strategic ‘Priority 2030’ program, ensuring federal funding and support.
In the short term, pilot projects will be launched in hard-to-access regions of Russia, such as the Arctic and Eastern Siberia—where precision exploration yields the greatest resource savings. Over the next three to four years, commercial contracts are expected with Russian and foreign mining companies, marking the technology’s transition to a market-ready product.
In the longer term, the methodology will likely be scaled to other raw materials and serve as the basis for a universal export platform for AI-based geological exploration.
