AI DinoTracker App Identifies Dinosaurs From Ancient Footprints

Scientists launched DinoTracker, an AI app that identifies dinosaur footprints with about 90% agreement with human experts.
Researchers fed the system 2,000 unlabelled footprint silhouettes instead of relying on possibly incorrect classifications.
The AI grouped prints by shape features such as toe spread, heel position, and ground contact.
Users can upload footprints, compare similar tracks, and test how shape changes affect results.
The study appeared in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Researchers from University of Edinburgh and Helmholtz-Zentrum led the work.
The system supports earlier findings of birdlike tracks from the Triassic and early Jurassic periods.
Scientists caution the prints likely came from birdlike meat-eating dinosaurs, not true early birds.