SORA Technology’s Mining DX Project in Zambia Integrating Satellite Data, Drones, and AI Selected for JICA Co-Creation × Innovation Program “QUEST2026”
SORA Technology Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Nagoya, Japan; Founder & CEO: Yosuke Kaneko; hereafter “SORA Technology”), which provides advanced drone and AI solutions across public health, agriculture, and climate resilience, announced that our project, “Integrated Digital Transformation (DX) Demonstration for Environmental Assessment, Slope Stability Evaluation, and Resource Exploration at Remote Open-Pit Mines Using Satellite Data, Multi-Scale Drones, and AI Analytics,” has been selected for QUEST2026, the Co-Creation and Innovation Program implemented by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
This project will assess the feasibility of developing a digital twin for an open-pit mine in Zambia by integrating satellite data, drones, and AI analytics across three key functions: environmental assessment, slope stability evaluation, and resource exploration.
Conceptual image of the integrated mining DX demonstration project
About JICA Co-Creation × Innovation Program “QUEST2026”
The JICA Co-Creation × Innovation Program “QUEST” aims to foster organic collaboration among various stakeholders to create innovative co-creation projects that address social challenges faced by developing countries and Japan. The program brings together diverse stakeholders from the private sector, academia, civil society, and public sector to facilitate the development of co-creation ideas and projects.
Website of “QUEST”: https://quest.jica.go.jp/en/
Background: Emerging Environmental and Safety Risks in Zambia’s Mining Sector
While resource development supports industries and livelihoods around the world, mining operations must also ensure environmental protection, coexistence with local communities, and safe operations. At large, remote open-pit mines in particular, conventional ground-based surveys alone make it difficult to continuously and promptly identify risks such as environmental changes and slope failures, while also requiring significant personnel, time, and cost.
Last year, a tailings dam at a copper mine in Zambia collapsed, releasing approximately 50 million liters of acidic waste into nearby waterways. The contamination reached the Kafue River system, a vital water source for many communities, with reports of mass fish deaths, disruptions to water supplies, and damage to crops.
To identify such environmental and safety risks at an early stage and help prevent or mitigate their impacts, an efficient system for continuous monitoring of large-scale mining sites and their surrounding environments is essential.
SORA Technology aims to enable the early detection of environmental and safety risks and support sustainable mining operations by combining satellite data for monitoring wide-area and long-term changes, drones for high-precision measurements of targeted locations, and AI for rapidly processing large volumes of data.
Integrated Mining DX Using Satellites, Drones, and AI
In this project, SORA Technology will leverage its expertise in drone-based geospatial data development and AI analytics to acquire and analyze data at multiple scales, taking advantage of the complementary capabilities of satellites and drones.
First, satellite data will be used to capture a comprehensive view of the entire mining area. Historical time-series analysis will enable wide-area monitoring of changes such as deforestation and land-surface changes. Based on these findings, areas requiring closer investigation will be identified and surveyed in high resolution using drones.
AI analytics will then be applied to the satellite and drone data to automatically detect features such as deforestation and geological characteristics. By applying the AI technology SORA Technology has developed through malaria control initiatives across Africa to identify high-risk locations from aerial imagery to the mining sector, the project aims to establish an efficient and highly accurate monitoring system for large-scale mining areas.
Conceptual image of change detection at a mining site
This project will combine these technologies to assess the feasibility of a digital twin integrating the following three functions:
- Environmental Assessment
Satellite-based wide-area and time-series data, together with high-resolution drone data, will be used to monitor environmental changes, including changes in forests and land surfaces. - Slope Stability Evaluation
High-precision data collected by drones will be used to assess slope conditions in areas such as mining pits, enabling the early identification of slope failure risks and contributing to improved mine safety. - Resource Exploration
Satellite and drone data, combined with AI analytics, will be used to identify geological characteristics, supporting more efficient resource exploration and mine planning.
Through this project, mining operators are expected to be able to identify risks such as slope failures at an earlier stage, enabling safer mining operations, while also developing more efficient mine plans based on high-precision resource exploration.
Furthermore, by enabling public authorities, mining operators, and local communities to share environmental assessment results based on objective data, the project aims to promote mutual understanding around mining development and contribute to the realization of “green mining,” where environmental conservation and resource development can coexist.
Through this project, SORA Technology aims to develop a new model for mining DX that integrates satellites, drones, and AI, starting in Zambia, with the goal of expanding the model to mining sites across Africa and other regions worldwide in the future.
Company Profile
Company Name: SORA Technology Co., Ltd.
Headquarters: 2-14-1 Nagono, Nishi-ku, Nagoya, Aichi, Japan
Representative: Yosuke Kaneko (Founder & CEO)
Established: 2020
Business: Development and provision of drone- and AI-powered technologies for infectious disease control, agricultural support, and climate adaptation.
Mission: SORA Technology is committed to the mission of “Transforming lives from the sky (SORA).” By leveraging advanced drone and AI technologies, the company aims to help build safe and prosperous societies anywhere in the world. Centered in Africa and other developing regions, SORA provides a wide range of services, from infectious disease surveillance and control to agricultural productivity enhancement and climate adaptation support.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sora-technology/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sora.technology/
