Using Mobile Data for Development

Mobile devices generate a range of data about their users. Information about identity, location, social patterns, movement, finances and even ambient environmental conditions can be derived from the data logged in mobile systems. As this data is uniquely detailed and tractable, it can capture information not easily found from other sources at a scale that would be difficult to recreate through other means. In particular, mobile is one of the only large-scale, digital data sources that touch large portions of low income populations in developing countries, implying that solutions identified in one market can easily be experimented with in another. While this data is personal and private, if it is analyzed under proper protections and anonymization protocols, it can be used to enhance the lives of poor people around the world across a range of dimensions. Read more about using mobile data for development here.