AI Empowers Surgery: CAIR unveils its latest large multimodality model for surgery

HONG KONG, March 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — As artificial intelligence technology continues to advance, it has accelerated intelligent innovation across various industries. Breakthroughs in AI technologies like GPT have gained widespread attention, especially in the healthcare sector, where they offer precise and efficient support for processes such as medical diagnosis and treatment. Seizing this opportunity and challenge, Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (CAIR), Hong Kong Institute of Science & Innovation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, officially unveiled its latest development, a large multimodality model – CARES Copilot 1.0, tailored for the medical field, on March 11 at the Hong Kong Science Park.

Leading the advancement of AI large models in healthcare and fostering innovative progress in smart healthcare

During the press conference, Prof Hongbin Liu, Executive Director of the Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (CAIR), Hong Kong Institute of Science & Innovation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Professor of Institute of Automation, CAS, delivered a keynote speech titled “Empowering doctors, benefiting patients: CARES Copilot 1.0 large multimodality model for surgery”. Professor Liu explored the significant role of CARES Copilot 1.0 in the medical field and emphasized: “We believe the true measure of the value of artificial intelligence technology lies in its ability to empower doctors, address their challenges, and enhance their capabilities. Only by doing so can AI technology truly propel the progress of human medicine”.

Dr. Chan Tat Ming, Head of Division of Neurosurgery at the Department of Surgery, The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), along with Prof Ming Feng, Chief Physician and Postgraduate Supervisor, at the Department of Neurosurgery, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, showcased the CARES Copilot 1.0 system during the event. They highlighted its functionality and practicality. Dr. Chan emphasized: “Open artificial intelligence is already transforming lives globally and is poised to revolutionize the field of medicine. Large language models, tailored for neuroscience, can surpass traditional teaching needs, enabling applications in clinical settings, operating rooms, and research institutes in conjunction with surgery, image guidance, and robotics. These models directly support frontline medical staff in emergencies by supervising, issuing warnings, preventing risky procedures, and pushing the boundaries of neuroscience”. Professor Feng added, “The combination of large surgical models and surgical navigation can offer real-time anatomical positioning information to surgeons, enhancing surgical safety”.

Prof Jun Kang, Director of the Department of Neurosurgery at Beijing Tongren Hospital and Postgraduate Supervisor, believes that “The integration of AI technology with surgical robotics will lead to significant changes in surgical procedures. In the future, across all aspects of surgery, including methods, concepts, instruments, or equipment, neurosurgeons will need to address new issues and challenges brought by AI technology and robotics”.

During the event, the research team from CAIR shared the challenges and rewards they encountered during the training process of the large multimodality model. The presentation demonstrated the team’s profound expertise and professional experience in this field.

AI has revolutionized the medical field, as demonstrated by the successful launch of CARES Copilot 1.0

Developed by CAIR, the CARES Copilot system is a sophisticated model customized for the medical sector. The system integrates intelligently with medical devices and is reliable and interpretable. CARES Copilot 1.0 excels in comprehending multimodal surgical data, such as images, text, voice, video, MRI, CT scans, and ultrasound. The system has made remarkable advancements in understanding and processing diverse medical scenarios and tasks, effectively supporting functions like surgical phase identification, segmentation of instruments and anatomical structures, instrument detection and counting, and generation of MRI high-resolution images.

Equipped with a 100K context window for efficient understanding and analysis, CARES Copilot 1.0 can handle complex surgical materials exceeding 3000 pages, providing significant practical value for the training and education of young medical professionals. Furthermore, the system can quickly and accurately retrieve information from surgical teaching materials, expert guidelines, medical literature, and other professional documents, thanks to its deep retrieval functions, ensuring highly credible and traceable responses. Tests demonstrate that the system can retrieve information from datasets of over a million records within few seconds, with an accuracy rate of up to 95%.

Emphasizing practicality and accessibility, the CARES Copilot system has undergone internal testing and continuous optimization across various departments in multiple hospitals, proving its value as a comprehensive, powerful, and reliable AI surgery assistant. The launch of the CARES Copilot 1.0, a multimodality model for surgery, will drive the efficient implementation of smart medical care and provide a strong impetus for the further advancement of intelligent healthcare.

Amidst the rapid development of artificial intelligence multimodal large-scale models, the medical field is experiencing significant changes. CAIR is dedicated to promoting the deep integration of artificial intelligence and robotics technology within the medical field, aiming at creating a healthier future. The center strives for innovation and actively seeks to become a key pillar in the construction of an internationally influential science and technology innovation center in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and make outstanding contributions to the progress of human health endeavors.

About CAIR

Hong Kong Institute of Science & Innovation, Chinese Academy of Sciences is the first national-level R & D institution outside mainland China, established by the Chinese Academy of Sciences. It was officially registered in Hong Kong in 2019 and has two innovation centers under the InnoHK initiative. The Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, built on the shoulders of the Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, focuses on cutting-edge international research in next-generation artificial intelligence fundamental theories, health-oriented intelligent technologies, new human-machine interaction technologies and equipment, and artificial intelligence open platform technologies. The goal is to build Hong Kong into an artificial intelligence hub with national support, attract international high-end talents, and establish an international innovation hub for the applications of artificial intelligence and robotics in medical technology and life sciences.

For more information, please visit CAIR’s WeChat public account or the Center’s official website: https://www.cair-cas.org.hk/

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SOURCE Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (CAIR), Hong Kong Institute of Science & Innovation, Chinese Academy of Sciences