- Google has shared 6 health AI updates at its annual event The Check Up
- It is improving AI Search results for health queries, and helping researchers parse large volumes of literature
- It has also created a model that could improve AI-powered drug discovery
At its annual The Check Up event, Google has shared six ways it says it's using AI to improve health care and advances in medicine and science.
The company claims "AI can lead to scientific progress and cutting-edge products that help improve health outcomes for people all around the world." While some of the benefits of tools like Gemini are much more obvious when it comes to sifting through emails or doing research, the medical application can appear less obvious, although no less exciting.
Here are the six developments the company shared, including one that I think might cause some concern.
1. AI Overviews Search improvements
The first development is a change to Google's AI Overviews in Search, which I believe will have the biggest day-to-day impact on Google users and should be treated with the most caution.
Google says Search and AI Overviews "to find credible and relevant information about health, from common illnesses to rare conditions," and that it's improving the AI Overview results on health topics to be "so they’re more relevant, comprehensive and continue to meet a high bar for clinical factuality."
The change is a new What people suggest section. "While people come to Search to find reliable medical information from experts, they also value hearing from others who have similar experiences," Google says.
To that end, AI will organize different perspectives from online discussions to help you sift through helpful experiences from people in similar situations. The example Google uses is a person dealing with arthritis who might want to know how other people with the condition exercise.
Obviously, there's the potential for misinformation to surface here. Google's image includes a disclaimer that the results are "for informational purposes only" and suggests consulting a medical professional for advice or diagnosis.
As with everything you read on Google, a level of caution and discernment is required, all of this information already exists on the internet, Google is just trying to make the helpful stuff easier to find. Real-world results will determine whether or not it's successful.
2. Medical Records changes
Google has also launched a new Medical Records API globally in Health Connect, which lets apps read and write medical record information like allergies and medications in a standard format that you can share with your doctor's office.
3. Pixel Watch 3 Loss of Pulse Detection
Announced last month, the Pixel Watch 3, one of the best Android smartwatches, is getting Loss of Pulse Detection in the US at the end of March. The tool can automatically call emergency services and notify people close by if your heart stops beating.
4. AI co-scientist
Google's recently launched AI co-scientist can help researchers "parse large volumes of scientific literature and generate high-quality, novel hypotheses." Google says the tool won't automate the scientific process but is designed "to help experts uncover new ideas and accelerate their work." The company says it's already being used in Imperial College London and Stanford.
5. TxGemma
Google has launched a new collection of Gemma-based models it hopes "will help improve the efficiency of AI-powered drug discovery." The AI can "understand regular text and the structures of different therapeutic entities, like small molecules, chemicals, and proteins," which means researchers can use it to predict how safe or effective new therapies and drugs might be.
6. Cancer treatment
Finally, Google highlighted how it's helping a hospital in the Netherlands develop an AI tool that can "accelerate the identification of personalized cancer treatments by combining vast public medical data and de-identified patient data." It can reportedly generate "summaries of treatment options and relevant medical publications," giving Doctors more time to focus on patient care.
The efficacy and reach of all of these initiatives remain to be seen, but Google's update is a clear sign that as AI continues to permeate the world around us, its advance into every facet of life including medicine appears inevitable. With lives at stake and patient well-being on the line, getting it right is more important than ever, but the rewards for success are also infinitely greater.
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