As you have probably noticed, AI is currently a hot topic: media coverage and public discussion about AI is almost impossible to avoid. However, you may also have noticed that AI means different things to different people. Unfortunately, there is no universal definition of AI. Let us try to explain it in our own words.
Artificial intelligence is a type of computer technology which is concerned with making machines work in an intelligent way, similar to the way that the human mind works. AI means that computers are capable of learning, thinking, and making decisions or taking actions. You may have heard about autonomous self-driving cars or delivery drones. Other examples of AI include personalised content on social media: online advertisements, music and film recommendations on Spotify, Netflix and other streaming services.
AI applications can help doctors find a bone fracture on an x-ray, find cancer in a computer tomography (CT) scan, or find and identify abnormal heart rhythm on an ECG scan.
AI in healthcare, then, is the use of machines to analyze and act on medical data. AI techniques are already used in healthcare for disease diagnosis, drug discovery, and patient risk identification. For example, AI applications can help doctors find a bone fracture on an x-ray, find cancer in a computer tomography (CT) scan, or find and identify abnormal heart rhythm on an ECG scan. But it is not just about diagnostics. There are already virtual nursing assistants and AI-aided online therapists available. You can also find intelligent fitness planners and trackers. It is a rapidly growing area and it will be interesting to see what comes next.