Artificial intelligence is making deep inroads into everyday medicine, handling tasks like transcribing doctor visits, scanning X-rays, and booking appointments. Now some top experts say ordinary people should turn to AI far more often for managing their own health.
“People should be using AI much more than they do today,” said Alex Zhavoronkov, founder and CEO of Insilico Medicine, during a CNBC CONVERGE LIVE panel in Singapore. “Many of those AI models that are used by consumers, they actually achieve the level of capability that is close to some of the doctors and sometimes better,” he added.
This push comes as AI healthcare spending soared to $20.9 billion last year, up 40 per cent, according to Statista. Big tech is leading the charge: OpenAI launched ChatGPT Health in January, linking users’ medical records and fitness trackers for advice, though not diagnoses. Amazon soon followed with HealthAI for its One Medical service, offering tips based on personal health data.
Such tools build on successes like Google’s DeepMind outperforming radiologists in breast cancer detection during NHS trials, and IBM Watson aiding cancer care in hundreds of hospitals. Yet biotech leader Shreehas Tambe of Biocon urged caution at the same event.
“Trying to put an evolved technology platform in the hands of someone who is still probably getting a hang of it, I think could lead to more erroneous results,” he warned. “Then you could have more challenges than benefits of that technology,” Tambe added.
AI’s real power shows in drug development, where Insilico cut timelines to 18 months from over four years, sealing a $2.75 billion deal with Eli Lilly in March. Regulators are warming up too, with the FDA approving AI for eye disease screening.
Still, Tambe stressed human checks. “You need these models to be validated by people who understand the science, who can push those boundaries to say, this is the solution that I want these generative models to develop.”
While AI promises shorter waits and lower costs, groups like the British Medical Association highlight risks from biased data. As regulations tighten, will it empower or undermine doctors?