SoftBank Group to launch AI medical support business
Japan's SoftBank Group said on Thursday that it will launch a new healthcare business using artificial intelligence technology through a joint venture with US startup firm Tempus AI.
The joint venture will start operations in August.
Tempus manages patients' medical data such as genetic information and pathological test results.
The joint venture plans to start collecting anonymized medical data and analyze it using AI technology by the end of this year.
An AI medical support service offering treatment options will be up and running in a few years.
SoftBank Group Chairman and CEO Son Masayoshi said that diseases will not be reduced to zero, but it is important to ease people's grief stemming from illness or death as much as possible. He added that to realize it, "We need to harness medical science and technology, including the potential of AI."
Japanese technology firm Fujitsu is also developing an AI system that will be used in the medical field.
