The Art of the Possible: Saving Tigers and Elephants with AI

Tackling Wildlife Poaching in the Jungles of Southeast Asia

Learn how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can save some of the planet’s most iconic animals

This blog is based on a conversation between WWF and Cisco/Splunk regarding wildlife conservation challenges and how AI can help address those, particularly in Southeast Asia.

The dream team behind the vision:

WWF Singapore

Cisco/Splunk

The Wildlife Crisis and How AI Could Help

Due to widespread poaching and habitat loss, wildlife population is declining globally. According to WWF’s Living Planet Report 2024 the average size of wildlife populations on a global level has decreased by 73% since the 1970s.

Source: WWF Living Planet Report 2024

In Asia, home to many biodiversity hotspots, the decline is 60%. Tigers are now considered extinct in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam, and species like Asian elephants are under pressure due to poaching and habitat destruction.

Wildlife poaching in Southeast Asia remains at critical levels, driven by high demand for exotic pets, bushmeat, and luxury products. Every part of the tiger, from whiskers to tail, is traded for use in traditional medicine, as status symbols, and as trophies.

A new development is the illegal trade of elephant skin to treat ailments like arthritis, despite zero scientific proof of any medicinal benefit.

The illegal trade in elephant skins for decorative beads and medicinal powders has spread rapidly since 2018 and is a significant threat to elephant populations. This trade has shifted focus to Asian elephants, including females and calves, because unlike the ivory trade where only some males have tusks, all elephants have skin.
Source: National Geographic

However, the most pervasive and invisible threat today is snaring. An estimated 12 million snares currently litter protected areas in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam, according to the WWF study Halting Southeast Asia's Snaring Crisis. These "silent killers" are creating the "Empty Forest Syndrome," a devastating state where the trees remain standing but the biodiversity within them has been biologically hollowed out.

Source: WWF, Silence of the Snares - Southeast Asia’s snaring crisis, page 26

Poachers often use cheap, easy-to-make poaching snares, which can devastate wildlife populations. To address this, patrolling alone is no longer enough. Impactful conservation now depends on turning field data into actionable intelligence. Leveraging AI could empower park authorities, rangers and communities with next-gen tech solutions to improve data-driven decision-making by enhancing monitoring systems, optimizing patrol routes, predicting poaching hotspots and by increasing the efficiency of existing efforts.

Beyond enforcement, AI can mitigate human-wildlife conflict by providing early warnings to local communities. This proactive approach can build vital trust, turning potential conflict into a powerful partnership for conservation.

The Role of World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)

WWF has been working across the region to address poaching by supporting government agencies in the effective and responsible implementation of law‑enforcement measures, empowering Indigenous Peoples and local communities, and strengthening biodiversity monitoring systems and use of innovative technology.

One of the key initiatives which WWF supports is the implementation of the Spatial Monitoring and Reporting Tool (SMART). SMART is an adaptive management platform developed and maintained over the past 11 years by a coalition of eight leading international conservation NGOs. It has become the world’s most widely adopted conservation area management tool, used by tens of thousands of conservation practitioners at more than 1,200 sites globally.

However, limited resources both in terms of capacity and personnel continue to constrain the full effectiveness of SMART. By integrating machine learning (ML) and AI with adequate on‑the‑ground capacity and support, data generated from SMART and other sources can be transformed into powerful insights that help allocate scarce resources to the right places. This has the potential to enhance conservation effectiveness and help strengthen frontline protection efforts.

The Vision: From a SOC (Security Operations Center) to a WOC (Wildlife Protection Operations Center)

Splunk has been named a Leader in the Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) for 11 consecutive years (2015–2025), confirming its sustained leadership in threat detection, investigation, and incident response.

The Cisco/Splunk best practices from a state-of-the-art SOC (Security Operations Center) could be adapted to a WOC (Wildlife Protection Operations Center) when it comes to threat detection, investigation, and incident response for Southeast Asia’s wildlife.

Potential use of ML/AI in a WOC, effectively addressing poaching

The Art of the Possible
Functional, real-world applications for wildlife protection:

A Splunk Art of the Possible WOC – Wildlife Protection Operation Center

(Disclaimer: For illustrative purposes only)

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What struck me most is the sheer richness of conservation data that already exists—patrol routes, species sightings, threat incidents, all systematically collected through SMART. The challenge is never data collection; it's turning that data into actions.

With a platform like Splunk, we can apply the same analytical techniques that protect enterprise networks to protecting endangered wildlife—pattern recognition, predictive modelling, and AI-generated recommendations that turn historical observations into actionable patrol strategies.

— Lukas Utz, Global Solution Architect AI/ML, Cisco/Splunk

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Why Tech Alone is Not Enough: The Value of Rangers and Social Media

Technology can provide powerful tools for wildlife protection, but they are not enough on their own. Wildlife protection ultimately depends on people, especially rangers, who serve as the frontline guardians of nature.

However, their scope of work is ever-increasing, ranging from anti-poaching responsibilities to managing human-wildlife conflicts. In addition, many Protected and Conserved Areas (PCAs) across Southeast Asia lack sufficient, well-trained and well-equipped rangers to effectively address biodiversity loss, making it extremely challenging to monitor and protect vast forest landscapes. This shortage of skilled personnel limits the ability to address threats of deforestation, safeguard wildlife, maintain ecosystem integrity, and protect the resources that people depend on.

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There are more hairdressers in the UK than there are rangers protecting our national parks globally. With such limited resources, safeguarding the natural places we all depend on becomes an enormous challenge.

— Rohit Singh, Senior Director Field Conservation and Wildlife Policy, WWF

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As such, amplifying the critical value of rangers is essential. In this context, platforms like Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok and others host millions of posts every day that shape public sentiment, influence behaviors, and spark real-world conversation about rangers.

Therefore, social media can play a key role by raising awareness, supporting recruitment, providing recognition, building public and government support, and highlighting the human stories behind wildlife protection efforts. By sharing authentic stories, videos, and ranger voices, social media can help build respect, emotional connection, trust, and ultimately support new policies. Check out the story of the Vietnamese ranger and elephant enthusiast Thien Le Quoc.

Source: Instagram                                                                            Source: WWF Asia-Pacific

Beyond awareness, social media can potentially mobilize global communities to support ranger training, wellbeing, and long-term conservation efforts. It can also correct misconceptions about the profession and highlight career pathways.

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Social media is clearly a strategic lever to boost the value of rangers. This is a critical area for wildlife protection where technology alone cannot succeed.

— Natalie Munz, AI Projects Intern, WWF Singapore

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Outlook

There are many levers needed to tackle wildlife poaching in the jungles of Southeast Asia. One of the most effective, albeit most difficult levers is to reduce the demand for wildlife products which derives from deep-rooted beliefs and traditions.

On the other hand, leveraging new technologies such as AI is an easy task in comparison. The availability of critical data, the transformation of best practices from a SOC to a WOC, and ultimately the opportunity to scale such AI-driven solutions could empower rangers in their daily work.

However, tech alone is not enough—conservation needs enough well trained and equipped rangers. In addition, the value of rangers as the guardians of nature needs to be amplified, and social media can be a strategic tool to achieve this goal.

Look out for the upcoming yearly World Ranger Day on July 31, 2026, to commemorate rangers and to celebrate the work rangers do to protect the planet’s natural treasures and cultural heritage.

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