3 days ago
41. Rad AI
Founders: Doktor Gurson (CEO), Jeff ChangLaunched: 2018Headquarters: San FranciscoFunding: $143 millionValuation: $528 millionKey Technologies: Artificial intelligence, cloud computing, deep neural networks/deep learning, generative AI, machine learningIndustry: Health carePrevious appearances on Disruptor 50 list: 0
Radiologist burnout is a condition that Rad AI co-founder Jeff Chang has long experience with — arguably, longer than any other radiology specialist has ever witnessed. The youngest radiologist and second youngest doctor in U.S. history, Chang started medical school at 16 at New York University and worked long night shifts as an emergency room radiologist for a decade.
The stress hasn't changed within his profession. With the vast majority of radiologists feeling overworked or at their limit, Rad AI is focused on using generative artificial intelligence to save time and enhance productivity.
Rad AI offers products designed to streamline workflow for radiologists, Rad AI Reporting and Rad AI Impressions. Rad AI Reporting generates imaging reports based on radiologists stating their findings from scans into a microphone or software system. By combining speech recognition with machine learning algorithms, it can also create templates that match individual radiologists' language and style preferences. Rad AI Impressions provides a summary of what a patient's image shows, saving radiologists over an hour per shift, according to the company, time that can be put back into patient care and burnout prevention.
Its AI models also identify follow-up recommendations from patient reports, and can automatically send communication to patients, which Rad AI says can increase needed follow-up appointments by as much as 40%.
A decade ago, experts were predicting radiology would be one of the first professions entirely replaced by AI. AI pioneer Geoffrey Hinton of the University of Toronto, and formerly Google, was among those quoted as saying radiologists should no longer be trained. Hinton recently told the New York Times that he was wrong, and while AI is great at interpreting imagery, it is a profession where it looks like AI and human doctors will be working together for much longer.
Rad AI's core reporting and imagery tools are designed to be reviewed and signed off by the radiologist. In the case of any system errors, the radiologist will have the final look at the patient's report and impression.
The future for Rad AI is looking bright, as the company is currently working with half of all health systems and radiology practices in the United States, including recent deals with the Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, Yale New Haven and Cincinnati Children's Hospital. It also has recent partnerships with tech and health-care giants Google and Bayer.
