A vast indium deposit has been identified in Australia thanks to artificial intelligence. Indium is a rare metal with vital applications in solar panels, LCD screens, and semiconductors. The discovery was made by Earth AI, a Sydney-based startup that successfully trained machine learning models to detect favorable subsurface geological conditions.
The company’s breakthrough demonstrates the growing role of AI in the mining sector, which is crucial to the global energy transition. More broadly, many companies are now training artificial intelligence systems on large datasets to locate previously untapped reserves of critical minerals essential for clean energy technologies.
A strategic indium deposit outside China
This discovery carries strategic implications. China is currently the world’s top producer of indium, and the identification of new deposits elsewhere could ease concerns over supply chain concentration. The timing is significant, as global markets continue to feel the effects of the U.S.–China trade war and the widespread need to diversify sources of critical minerals. Indium had not been spared from tariffs and retaliatory measures.
Earth AI told Axios it found the deposit approximately 310 miles northeast of Sydney. After training its AI models to recognize deep underground patterns indicative of metal-rich hydrothermal systems, the company analyzed field samples showing concentrations above 117 parts per million. Several other samples registered more than 20 ppm. Given that indium usually exists in Earth’s crust at extremely low levels, the results point to a highly promising find.
How Earth AI operates
Earth AI’s business model disrupts traditional mineral exploration. Rather than relying on legacy methods, the startup uses its proprietary software to identify potential mineral sites, then secures extraction rights. It sells those rights to mining companies and offers consultancy services to help them locate valuable resources within their existing assets. This is made possible by Australia’s regulatory framework, which provides open access to geological data.
“A mineral deposit is like a seed in an apple,” said Roman Teslyuk, Earth AI’s founder and CEO. “The apple is the hydrothermal system, the seed is the mineral deposit. Locating the seed is extremely difficult, it’s hundreds of meters underground. But finding the apple is much easier.”