Google details AI that classifies chest X-rays with human-level accuracy

Analyzing chest X-ray images with machine learning algorithms is easier said than done. That's because typically, the clinical labels required to train those algorithms are obtained with rule-based natural language processing or human annotation, both of which tend to introduce inconsistencies and errors. Additionally, it's challenging to assemble data sets that represent an adequately diverse spectrum of cases, and to establish clinically meaningful and consistent labels given only images. In an effort to move forward the goalpost with respect to X-ray image classification, researchers at Google devised AI models to spot four findings on human chest X-rays: pneumothorax (collapsed lungs), nodules and masses, fractures, and airspace opacities (filling of the pulmonary tree with material). In a paper published in the journal Nature, the team claims the model family, which was evaluated using thousands of images across data sets with high-quality labels, demonstrated "radiologist-level" performance in an independent review conducted by human experts.