The healthcare industry is facing a shortage of 86,000 clinicians in the US by 2036, which can lead to inefficiencies in healthcare access and quality of care. AI has the potential to empower doctors with faster, better-informed decisions, and can offer scalable solutions in the face of this personnel shortage. Clinical AI can be used by clinicians as end-users or in clinical decision support tools. GenAI and LLMs are being used to improve administrative efficiencies in healthcare by streamlining lower-risk tasks like documentation and billing.
Predominantly, AI has been applied to structured data in healthcare through AI/ML software medical devices for interpreting data from images, such as CT scans, X-rays, and MRIs. Successful startups such as Viz.ai or Aidoc have attracted significant funding and partnerships with major hospitals, health systems and technology providers leveraging these technologies. Today, emerging startups are using genAI to improve clinical decision support by interpreting vast amounts of structured and unstructured data.
Clinical AI agents enable clinicians to expand their reach, resulting in more effective patient care, cost reductions for payors and revenue opportunities for clinicians and hospital systems through reimbursable services powered by cost-effective software. Many clinicians are skeptical of AI tools because of concerns related to their safety, reliability, and their impact on the human element in patient care. However, demonstrating how AI can serve as a supportive tool rather than a replacement can help alleviate these apprehensions.
Calculating ROI for clinical AI tools presents a challenge compared to administrative AI tools, which have clear financial metrics. Clinical AI tools deliver benefits such as more accurate diagnoses, earlier detection, and improved patient satisfaction that take time to manifest and are harder to directly link to financial performance. Epic has built over 100 genAI projects with the goal of streamlining medical insights, charting and coding, and minimizing documentation.
Key archetypes of a successful clinical AI company include developing tools for clinicians, offering solutions for unmet clinical use-cases, and academic medical center integration.
Generative AI is revolutionizing healthcare, automating lower-risk tasks, improving healthcare access and streamlining administrative processes. Clinical applications of AI offer real-time insights, accurate diagnoses and treatment suggestions based on vast datasets. With the help of AI, clinicians can make faster, more informed decisions, significantly improving outcomes for everyone in the healthcare ecosystem.
Cathay Innovation, which is backed by global biopharma leader Sanofi as an investor and strategic partner, has invested in AI-driven startups like Owkin, Inato, Nabla, Bioptimus, and Entalpic.