Google DeepMind to use AI to detect early signs of sight loss

Google DeepMind, the British artificial intelligence research arm of Google, will collaborate with Britain's National Health Service (NHS) to tackle sight loss in humans. A retina-scanning system that will be able to detect the early signs of eye disease will be developed in partnership with with Moorfields Eye Hospital in London. About a million anonymized scans taken from patients who attended Moorfields between January 1, 2007 and February 29 this year will be used for analysis by Google's Artifical Intelligence (Al) computer. Scientists are hopeful that they will be able to recognize conditions such as macular degeneration, a gradual deterioration of the light-sensitive tissue lining at the back of the eye, and diabetic retinopathy, when high blood sugar levels damage the retina over time. Early treatment can be critical in both conditions.