Harnessing the potential of
Artificial Intelligence
for Sustainable Development


The SDG AI Lab is a joint initiative of UNDP's Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) teams, and the Sustainable Finance Hub. Established in 2019, it is hosted by UNDP’s Istanbul International Center for Private Sector in Development (ICPSD), with the generous support of the Government of Türkiye. Since 2025, the Lab has been operating under UNDP’s Digital, AI and Innovation Hub.

Our Approach

One-stop solution with agile, gig approach to AI research in Sustainable Development

  Research formulation, solution architecture, andIdentifying the right talents for each specific tasks
  Recruitment and coordination of highly-skilled volunteers
  Establishing teams and coordinating the workflow and experimentation
  Monitor the R&D progress to achieve the high standard quality of work
  Deliver results in the formats of prototypes, architecture, reports, presentations

Our Volunteer Data Scientist Initiative

· SDG AI Lab mobilizes volunteer data scientists via UNV-IICPSD Digital Transformation Partnership.

· The Lab engages online volunteers to SDG relevant research streams, manages their work and facilitates their relationship with UNDP units.

Connecting UNDP teams and data scientists to address development challenges

Agile framework for small research & development teams: task-based, time-boxed iterations, asynchronous cooperation, Scrum-based project management

Environment for remote team collaboration:
- Microsoft Teams Channel for Communication 
- Github Group Repository for Code Review

- 1 Technical Advisor
- 3 Full-Time Data Scientists
- Volunteer Data Scientists
- 1 Full-Time Partnership & Outreach Analyst

Our Supporters and Partners


The lab is grateful to the governments of our fully-funded volunteers for their support: