The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) in recent years has revolutionized the field of medicine, according to Jaime De Los Hoyos Moreno, head of the Department of Biomedical Informatics at the Clínica Alemana in Santiago, Chile.
Speaking at the conference “Artificial Intelligence in Health: present and future perspectives” during the 9th Latin American Congress of Technology and Business América Digital in Santiago de Chile, De Los Hoyos highlighted the significant progress made possible by large language models like ChatGPT.
In the past, chatbots were considered primitive, but today’s models can answer basic questions just like a human would, leading to advancements such as passing Turing tests and providing medical knowledge.
As a surgeon, De Los Hoyos emphasized the potential for AI in medicine, citing the vast amount of data handled by the industry. He explained that AI, particularly generative AI, has enabled the emulation of human problem-solving capabilities, allowing for the creation of realistic videos, texts, and even music.
De Los Hoyos demonstrated how AI models like ChatGPT can be used to predict bone age in infants and assess the risk of stroke in elderly patients through neuroimaging analysis. He also discussed the challenges posed by the breadth of data collected by these systems, which can lead to inaccuracies and “hallucinations” in responses.
Despite the potential pitfalls, De Los Hoyos remains optimistic about the future of AI in medicine, noting that these models can enhance tasks like summarizing patient records and identifying disease risks. He emphasized that AI should be viewed as a complement to human intelligence rather than a replacement.
Looking ahead, De Los Hoyos predicts continued progress in AI technology and its integration into the healthcare sector. While acknowledging the importance of caution, he believes that the collaboration between human expertise and AI capabilities will lead to significant advancements in the field.