Most people spend their lunch breaks grabbing a sandwich or going for a walk. But soon it could be possible to get a full-body MRI scan which detects the earliest stages of cancer during your lunch hour, thanks to AI. Health tech pioneer Ezra has launched its screening service in the UK, marking a major expansion beyond the US. Their AI-powered scans currently last an hour and cover 13 organs, with the added option of an extra lung CT scan and heart disease screening. As cancer rates are rising – especially among young people – the company say they are the best defence against the disease. With early detection, treatment can start earlier and prognosis improves dramatically.

In the 2016 movie Passengers, the crew of a spacecraft bound for a distant planet had access to a scanning chamber known as Autodoc that could instantly diagnose their medical problems and even predict the time of their death. I'm reminded of this, and countless other sci-fi plots, as I strip off my robe and step semi-naked into the gleaming capsule of the Neko Body Scan. Like Autodoc, it promises to conduct a comprehensive examination of my health – inside and out – within minutes, and, while unable to estimate the timing of my demise (yet), it can identify whether I'm at imminent or future risk of developing some of the biggest killers and causes of chronic ill health. Healthy as I may feel on the outside, the prospect of learning whether there is some hidden nastiness lurking on my health horizon, feels too tempting to refuse. The doors of the pod slide shut, and a soothing female voice instructs me to close my eyes and keep still.

Hundreds of millions of people turn to Spotify for their music needs, healing their souls with all sorts of music. Now, Spotify founder Daniel Ek has announced his Swedish healthcare startup Neko Health, which specializes in providing body scans powered by artificial intelligence (AI). The names of the co-founders, Daniel Ek and Hjalmar Nilsonne, were mentioned in a LinkedIn post made by the company. The post also mentioned a focus on a healthcare system that helps people "stay healthy through preventive measures and early detection." The healthcare industry is fiercely competitive, especially when it comes to new technology.