Google has acknowledged that its Android Earthquake Alerts System (AEA) failed to provide timely and accurate warnings during the devastating earthquakes that struck Turkey on February 6, 2023. The twin quakes — a magnitude 7.8 earthquake followed by a 7.5 aftershock — claimed over 55,000 lives and injured more than 100,000 people across southeastern Turkey and northern Syria. Despite being live and functional, the system underestimated the severity of the initial quake, sending only 469 high-priority “Take Action” alerts, even though nearly 10 million people were within the potential impact zone.

According to a BBC investigation, the AEA system sent around half a million lower-level “Be Aware” notifications, which are intended for light shaking and do not produce loud alerts or override Do Not Disturb settings. The Android-based system, which relies on smartphone sensors to detect ground movement, significantly miscalculated the intensity of the first quake, estimating it between 4.5 and 4.9 — far below the actual magnitude of 7.8. With more than 70% of mobile phones in Turkey running Android, the failure to send out critical alerts likely contributed to the high death toll.

Following criticism and scrutiny, Google admitted that its detection algorithm had "limitations" and has since improved the system based on data from the Turkey quake. The company re-ran a simulation of the initial earthquake with the updated algorithm and claimed it would now send 10 million “Take Action” alerts and 67 million “Be Aware” notifications. During the second major tremor on the same day, the system performed better, delivering over 8,000 high-priority alerts and nearly four million lower-priority ones.

The Android Earthquake Alerts System is now operational in 98 countries, and Google says it continues to refine the system after each seismic event. A Google spokesperson told the BBC, “We continue to improve the system based on what we learn in each earthquake,” acknowledging that lessons from Turkey’s 2023 disaster have led to critical advancements in alert accuracy and delivery.