The DoD and Philips are using AI to tag infections up to 2 days before symptoms appear

The US Department of Defense (DOD) and Dutch health tech giant Royal Philips revealed that their codeveloped AI-powered tool can identify infections up to 48 hours before symptoms are present. By analyzing an individual's vital signs and over 165 health-related biomarkers, the AI system could deliver improved insight regarding patient health, as well as the ability to prevent an outbreak of infection through proactive containment measures.

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The two plan to incorporate their machine-learning algorithm into some form of a wearable to monitor users' health in a noninvasive way. This announcement is the culmination of an 18-month research and development (R&D) project, and though the tech is initially planned for military use, the pair expect to roll out widespread civilian applications down the line.

This news builds on a slew of other recent moves highlighting disease detection as one of the strongest applications of AI in healthcare:

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• Geisinger Health System developed a predictive AI model for detecting sepsis using open source technology from IBM's Watson. Last month, researchers from the Pennsylvania-based regional health system revealed an AI tool capable of predicting patient mortality during hospitalization and up to 90 days after. Sepsis is a life-threatening condition that can develop following any type of infection - and it's notoriously difficult to diagnose, as many symptoms overlap with those of common illnesses. And Nashville-based HCA Healthcare declared in 2018 that it saved over 5,500 lives with its own AI algorithm for sepsis detection. Progress in the diagnosis and detection of sepsis is of critical importance, as new research indicates that the cost of sepsis to US hospitals in 2018 rose $1.5 billion from 2015, with the average cost per patient increasing from $58,000 in 2015 to $70,000 just three years later.
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• A California-based genomics startup is using AI to identify infectious diseases from a single blood draw. Karius is a life sciences startup that utilizes a machine learning algorithm to scan through patient DNA and match any traces of infection to the genetic profile of more than 1,000 disease causing microbial pathogens. CEO and cofounder of Karius, Mickey Kertesz explained to Business Insider Intelligence back in August that the company's $2,000 test is a "no-brainer" given that perplexing infections are often diagnosed by invasive biopsies, which can cost tens of thousands of dollars.

Philips' DOD partnership builds on the company's work with AI, wearables, and virtual displays - three areas with a wide range of healthcare applications. Philips is making the right call investing R&D time into an AI tool with a large potential market, as 62% of healthcare execs predict the technology will have a major impact on healthcare within the next five years.

But it's far from the only project Philips has in the works: Last month, the Dutch health tech giant unveiled its new NightBalance wearable device to aid individuals living with sleep apnea - a chronic sleeping disorder that causes repeated breathing cessation throughout the night. And earlier this year, Philips announced that it was working on an extended reality surgical platform with Microsoft for the latter's HoloLens 2 headset.

What's smart about focusing on these three technologies is that AI, wearables, and virtual displays can be leveraged for a variety of healthcare applications, not just a single use case. And we think that approaching R&D from a platform perspective will help Philips build flexible revenue pipelines that can be deployed to fit the rapidly transforming digital needs of healthcare providers.

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