Impact AI

What if the hidden patterns of time series data could be unlocked to predict the future with remarkable accuracy? In this episode of Impact AI, I sit down with Max Mergenthaler Canseco to discuss democratizing time series data analysis through the development of foundation models. Max is the CEO and co-founder of Nixtla, a company specializing in time series research and deployment, aiming to democratize access to advanced predictive insights across various industries.In our conversation, we explore the significance of time series data in real-world applications, the evolution of time series forecasting, and the shift away from traditional econometric models to the development of TimeGPT. Learn about the challenges faced in building foundation models for time series and a time series model’s practical applications across industries. Discover the future of time series models, the integration of multimodal data, scaling challenges, and the potential for greater adoption in both small businesses and large enterprises. Max also shares Nixtla’s vision for becoming the go-to solution for time series analysis and offers advice to leaders of AI-powered startups.Key Points:Max's background in philosophy, his transition to machine learning, and his path to Nixtla.Why time series data is the “DNA of the world” and its role in businesses and institutions.Nixtla's advanced forecasting algorithms, the benefits, and their application to industry.Historical overview of time series forecasting and the development of modern approaches.Learn about the advantages of foundation models for scalability, speed, and ease of use.Uncover the range of datasets used to train Nixtla's foundation models and their sources.Similarities and differences between training TimeGPT and large language models (LLMs).Hear about the main challenges of building time series foundation models for forecasting. How Nixtla ensures the quality of its models and the limitations of conventional benchmarks.Explore the gap between benchmark performance and effectiveness in the real world.He shares the current and upcoming plans for Nixtla and its TimeGPT foundation model. He shares his predictions for the future of time series foundation models.Advice for leaders of AI-powered startups and what impact he aims to make with Nixtla.Quotes:“Time series are in one aspect, the DNA of the world.” — Max Mergenthaler Canseco“Time is an essential component to understand a change of course, but also to understand our reality. So, time series is maybe a somewhat technical term for a very familiar aspect of our reality.” — Max Mergenthaler Canseco“Given that we are all training on massive amounts of data and some of us are not disclosing which datasets we’re using, it’s always a problem for academics to try to benchmark foundation models because there might be leakage.” — Max Mergenthaler Canseco“That’s an interesting aspect of foundation models in time series, that benchmarking is not as straightforward as one might think.” — Max Mergenthaler Canseco“I think right now in our field probably benchmarks are not necessarily indicative of how well a model is going to perform in real-world data.” — Max Mergenthaler Canseco“I think that we’re also going to see some of those intuitions that come from the LLM field translated into the time series field soon.” — Max Mergenthaler CansecoLinks:Max Mergenthaler Canseco on LinkedInNixtlaNixtla on XNixtla on LinkedInNixtla on GitHubResources for Computer Vision Teams:LinkedIn – Connect with Heather.Computer Vision Insights Newsletter – A biweekly newsletter to help bring the latest machine learning and computer vision research to applications in people and planetary health.Computer Vision Strategy Session – Not sure how to advance your computer vision project? Get unstuck with a clear set of next steps. Schedule a 1 hour strategy session now to advance your project.

Ron Alfa, Co-founder and CEO of Noetik, a leader in using AI for cancer immunotherapy, dives into the innovative world of foundation models. He discusses the necessity of curated datasets for effective model training and the challenges faced in the biological domain. Ron highlights the transformative power of multimodal data in reshaping cancer treatment and the importance of qualitative assessments in model validation. His insights also address the future of AI in biotech and the strategic advantages of custom datasets tailored for immunotherapy research.

Julianna Ianni, Vice President of AI Research and Development at Proscia, is reshaping pathology with advanced AI solutions. She discusses how Concentriq's innovative Embeddings feature accelerates AI model creation—making it 13 times faster than traditional methods. Julianna dives into the importance of integrating external foundation models for enhanced performance and flexibility. The conversation also covers tackling biases in AI and the platform’s role in revolutionizing precision medicine, ultimately making pathology insights more accessible.

With farmers sometimes waiting weeks for lab results to make critical decisions, Benjamin De Leener, Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer of ChrysaLabs, sought to transform the future of soil health. ChrysaLabs has developed a groundbreaking handheld, AI-powered probe that delivers fast field-ready insights into soil properties like pH, nutrients, and organic matter.In this episode of Impact AI, Benjamin dives into the journey of creating this innovative tool, the challenges of working with complex agricultural data, and the role of machine learning in empowering farmers to make sustainable, data-driven decisions. Tune in to discover how this technology is not only boosting farming efficiency but also contributing to a healthier ecosystem and the fight against climate change!Key Points:Benjamin’s biomedical engineering background and how it led him to start ChrysaLabs.How ChrysaLabs’ portable probe provides real-time soil analysis.The role of machine learning in converting spectroscopy data into actionable soil insights.Challenges in acquiring diverse, high-quality soil data for model training.Addressing variability in soil and lab measurements to ensure model accuracy.What goes into ChrysaLabs’ validation techniques to maintain robust, reliable AI models.Considerations for overcoming seasonal constraints in agricultural data collection.Technological advancements that have enabled portable, cost-effective sensors.Advice for AI-powered startups: balance data volume with variability management.Collaborative efforts between agronomists and machine learning engineers at ChrysaLabs.ChrysaLabs’ vision for improving soil health and combating climate change.Quotes:“There’s a translation between the light information that we receive from the spectrometer and the information that is actionable for the farmers and agronomists. The machine learning models are between the hardware, the application, and what the farmers can do.” — Benjamin De Leener“The main challenge that the agronomists and the farmers have is the data about what’s in the soil. So, that’s what we provide.” — Benjamin De Leener“The more data you accumulate, the bigger the variability that you need to take into account. It’s not always better to think, ‘The more data I have, the better’ because sometimes, the less data, the more focused the models are.” — Benjamin De Leener“We want to combat climate change – [We believe] that the soil can sequester a lot of carbon through agriculture, and we want to provide a way to measure that so that, when we choose one agronomical practice over another, we understand what we’re doing.” — Benjamin De LeenerLinks:ChrysaLabsChrysaLabs InsightLabsBenjamin De Leener on LinkedInBenjamin De Leener on Google ScholarBenjamin De Leener on XResources for Computer Vision Teams:LinkedIn – Connect with Heather.Computer Vision Insights Newsletter – A biweekly newsletter to help bring the latest machine learning and computer vision research to applications in people and planetary health.Computer Vision Strategy Session – Not sure how to advance your computer vision project? Get unstuck with a clear set of next steps. Schedule a 1 hour strategy session now to advance your project.

Can AI cure autoimmune diseases? This episode of Impact AI dives into the groundbreaking work of DeepCure, where artificial intelligence meets medicinal chemistry to tackle some of healthcare's most stubborn challenges. Co-founder and CEO Kfir Schreiber shares how his team uses advanced machine learning tools, physics simulations, and human expertise to design the next generation of small molecule drugs. From overcoming data limitations to fostering tight collaboration between machine learning scientists and chemists, this discussion illuminates the potential of AI-driven innovation in transforming patient outcomes. With a rheumatoid arthritis drug nearing clinical trials, DeepCure is poised to redefine the future of medicine. Tune in to discover how AI can accelerate drug discovery, overcome data challenges, and create life-changing therapies, as well as how these insights can inspire your own innovative pursuits!Key Points:How Kfir's background in computer science and applied math led him to found DeepCure.Insight into DeepCure’s mission to leverage proprietary technology to create small molecule drugs for inflammation and autoimmunity.Augmenting human expertise with AI: the role of machine learning in drug discovery.Layers of using AI to analyze targets and design small molecules with optimized properties.Challenges in small molecule datasets and how DeepCure develops tailored models.The influence of molecule representations like SMILES on machine learning models.Combining publicly available datasets with data generated in DeepCure’s automation lab.Model validation techniques to address out-of-distribution challenges in small molecule data.Collaboration between machine learning experts and chemists to refine drug discovery.Recruiting top talent by highlighting DeepCure’s impactful mission in healthcare.The process of onboarding machine learning developers with no prior chemistry knowledge.Problem-solving advice for leaders of AI-powered startups: it’s not about the AI!DeepCure’s future plans for clinical trials and expansion into other autoimmune diseases.Quotes:“Machine learning in our space is almost never a complete solution. It's a way to augment our chemists [and] our biologists [to] try to make them capable of solving problems that were unsolved before.” — Kfir Schreiber“One of the best things about DeepCure [is the] very tight collaboration between the domain experts and our machine learning scientists.” — Kfir Schreiber“Your average machine-learning scientist doesn't have chemistry intuition. We need this feedback and we need to integrate this feedback back into our models to make the predictions make sense.” — Kfir Schreiber“Focus on the problem, focus on the value, and work your way backwards to the best tools to use.” — Kfir SchreiberLinks:DeepCureKfir Schreiber on LinkedInResources for Computer Vision Teams:LinkedIn – Connect with Heather.Computer Vision Insights Newsletter – A biweekly newsletter to help bring the latest machine learning and computer vision research to applications in people and planetary health.Computer Vision Strategy Session – Not sure how to advance your computer vision project? Get unstuck with a clear set of next steps. Schedule a 1 hour strategy session now to advance your project.

What if we could unlock the hidden potential of unstructured health data to improve patient outcomes? In this episode, I sit down with David Sontag, co-founder and CEO of Layer Health, to discuss the transformative role of AI in healthcare. David, an MIT professor (on leave) and leading machine learning researcher, delves into how Layer Health addresses one of healthcare’s most persistent challenges: extracting actionable insights from unstructured medical data. In our conversation, David explains how Layer Health’s AI platform automates complex chart review tasks, tackles data generalization issues across diverse healthcare systems, and overcomes challenges like bias and dataset shifts. We explore Layer Health’s groundbreaking use of large language models (LLMs), the importance of scalable AI solutions, and the integration of AI into clinical workflows. Join us to discover how Layer Health is reducing administrative burdens, improving data accessibility, and shaping the future of AI-powered healthcare with David Sontag.Key Points:Hear about David's career journey from MIT professor to CEO of Layer Health.How Layer Health transforms chart reviews and enhances healthcare workflows.The role of large language models in solving the company's scalability problems.Learn about Layer Health's approach to benchmarking performance for institutions.Explore how the company navigates dataset shifts and ensures robust model performance.Discover Layer Health's strategies to identify and mitigate bias in clinical AI models.Find out about the challenges of implementing reasoning across diverse medical records.Why building trust through data transparency, auditing, and compliance are essential.David’s advice for AI startup leaders on balancing research with practical implementation.Layer Health's long-term vision for reshaping healthcare and improving patient outcomes.Quotes:“Our vision for Layer Health is to transform healthcare with artificial intelligence, really building upon all of the work that we've been doing over the past decade in the AI and health field and academic space.” — David Sontag“What we realized very quickly is that where [Layer Health] would have the biggest impact was bringing the right information to the physician's fingertips at the right point in time.” — David Sontag“We're using large language models to drive the abstraction of those clinical variables that we need for these either retrospective or prospective use cases.” — David Sontag“Where I think we're going to see the biggest source of bias is likely going to be not along the traditional demographic-related quantities, but rather on more clinical quantities.” — David Sontag“A lot of the friction that we currently see in healthcare, [Layer Health] is going to really take a big bite out of [it].” — David SontagLinks:David SontagDavid Sontag on LinkedInLayer HealthResources for Computer Vision Teams:LinkedIn – Connect with Heather.Computer Vision Insights Newsletter – A biweekly newsletter to help bring the latest machine learning and computer vision research to applications in people and planetary health.Computer Vision Strategy Session – Not sure how to advance your computer vision project? Get unstuck with a clear set of next steps. Schedule a 1 hour strategy session now to advance your project.

How can advancements in biotechnology and machine learning lead to revolutionary treatments for age-related diseases? In this episode, I speak with Hanadie Yousef, CEO and Co-Founder of Juvena Therapeutics, to discuss her work on protein-based therapeutics. Hanadie, a neurobiologist specializing in aging and tissue degeneration, has pioneered research at Juvena to identify regenerative proteins that can restore tissue function and combat chronic diseases.In our conversation, Hanadie details Juvena’s AI-driven platform that identifies, validates, and engineers protein candidates with therapeutic potential. We explore the power of machine learning models in drug discovery, the challenges of working with multi-omics data, and the potential for new treatments to revolutionize healthcare by targeting disease at the molecular level. Join us to hear how Juvena Therapeutics is setting a new standard in precision medicine aimed at helping individuals age with vitality.Key Points:The founding story of Juvena Therapeutics and its mission to restore tissue health.How the company leverages AI to identify regenerative proteins from stem cell secretions.Learn how Juvena's machine learning models enable targeted protein engineering.Explore the different types of data that Juvena utilizes and how they are structured.Hear about the benefits of in-house data generation for model training and validation.Discover the challenges of generating sufficient data for accurate model predictions.Technological advancements in proteomics and multi-omics that support its platform.Hanadie shares advice for AI-driven startups and her hopes for Juvena's future impact.Quotes:“Juvena is part of really, a new approach to leveraging the biology of aging and underlying mechanisms associated with why our tissues decline in function, in order to target this biology so that we can treat a broad swath of diseases.” — Hanadie Yousef“That's ultimately the goal of Juvena, to really enable people to age with dignity, to continue to contribute to society, and to really maintain their health until the very end.” — Hanadie Yousef“Ultimately, [machine learning is] leveraged at every stage of the process from in silico prediction, and screening through to the actual engineering and drug development.” — Hanadie Yousef“When it comes to wet lab data generation, sometimes you're really limited by just the quantity of data that you can generate.” — Hanadie Yousef“AI isn't the solution to everything. Oftentimes, you do still want to have that human in the loop and really test the accuracy of these models.” — Hanadie YousefLinks:Hanadie Yousef on LinkedInJuvena TherapeuticsJuvena Therapeutics on LinkedInResources for Computer Vision Teams:LinkedIn – Connect with Heather.Computer Vision Insights Newsletter – A biweekly newsletter to help bring the latest machine learning and computer vision research to applications in people and planetary health.Computer Vision Strategy Session – Not sure how to advance your computer vision project? Get unstuck with a clear set of next steps. Schedule a 1 hour strategy session now to advance your project.

To succeed at an AI startup, you have to be able to show your work and its value. During this episode, I am joined by Brigham Hyde, Co-Founder and CEO of Atropos Health, to talk about his app that gathers real-world evidence for healthcare. He is an entrepreneur, operator, and investor who is deeply immersed in the potential of data and AI. Join us as he shares his journey to creating Atropos Health, why he believes AI is important for healthcare, and the potential it holds to bridge the evidence gap. We discuss how the lack of diversity in healthcare data has impacted patient outcomes leading up to this point and explore some of the methods Atropos uses to get the most out of machine learning. We discuss the AI data-gathering process, how each setup is validated and adapted, and how he measures the impact of his technology. In closing, he shares advice for other leaders of AI-powered startups and offers his vision for the future impact of Atropos.Key Points:Welcoming Brigham Hyde, co-founder and CEO of Atropos Health.His journey to creating Atropos Health after working in other medical AI arenas. Why AI is important for healthcare: the evidence gap. Atropos’s perspective on the role of real-world evidence.How the lack of diversity in healthcare data sets impacts patient outcomes.Methods Atropos uses to leverage machine learning to ensure that patient populations are supported.The data-gathering process.How the setup is validated and adapted according to need.Measuring the impact of the technology. Advice for other leaders of AI-powered startups. Where Brigham foresees the impact of Atropos in three to five years. Quotes:“At Atropos, we focus on the automation and generation of high-quality real-world evidence to support clinical decision-making with the dream of creating personalized evidence for everyone.” — Brigham Hyde“We see the role of real-world evidence and observational research as a great way to supplement that gap.” — Brigham Hyde“It's our ability to create that evidence, transparently show you the populations that are being used and the bias that is involved, and the techniques to remove that bias that are the key.” — Brigham Hyde“You've got to be able to show how what you're doing works, that it's not biased, and that it's applicable to the health system you're working with, and it's got to be done in extremely high quality.” — Brigham HydeLinks:Brigham Hyde on LinkedIn Brigham Hyde on XAtropos HealthAtropos Health on LinkedInAtropos Health on XResources for Computer Vision Teams:LinkedIn – Connect with Heather.Computer Vision Insights Newsletter – A biweekly newsletter to help bring the latest machine learning and computer vision research to applications in people and planetary health.Computer Vision Strategy Session – Not sure how to advance your computer vision project? Get unstuck with a clear set of next steps. Schedule a 1 hour strategy session now to advance your project.

As machine learning becomes increasingly widespread, AI holds the potential to revolutionize drug development, making it faster, safer, and more affordable than ever. In this episode, I'm joined by Jo Varshney, Founder and CEO of VeriSIM Life, to explore how her company is transforming drug translation through hybrid AI.With her unique blend of expertise as a veterinarian and computer scientist, Jo leverages biology, chemistry, and machine learning knowledge to tackle the translational gap between animal models and human patients. You’ll learn about VeriSIM Life’s innovative approach to overcoming data limitations, synthesizing new data, and applying ML models tailored to various diseases, from rare conditions to neurological disorders. Jo also reveals VeriSIM’s unique translational index score, a tool that predicts clinical trial success rates and helps pharma companies identify promising drugs early and avoid costly failures.For anyone curious about the future of AI in healthcare, this episode offers a fascinating glimpse into the world of biotech innovation. To discover how VeriSIM Life’s technology is poised to bring life-saving treatments to patients faster and more safely than ever before, be sure to tune in today!Key Points:How Jo's background and interest in translational challenges led her to found VeriSIM Life.Addressing translational gaps between animal models and human trials with hybrid AI.Combining biology-based models with ML to enhance drug testing accuracy.Small molecules, peptides, large molecules, clinical trial outcomes, and other data inputs.Ways that VeriSIM’s models are tailored per data type, ensuring maximum accuracy.Insight into the challenge of overcoming data gaps and how VeriSIM solves it.How hybrid AI reduces overfitting, boosting model accuracy in data-limited scenarios.What goes into validating VeriSIM’s models through partnerships and external testing.Measuring the impact of this technology with VeriSIM’s translational index score.Jo’s advice for AI-powered startups: be specific, validate technology, and be adaptable.Her predictions for the impact VeriSIM will have in the next few years.Quotes:“[Hybrid AI] helps us not only unravel newer methods and mechanisms of actions or novel targets but also helps us identify better drug candidates that could eventually be safer and more effective in human patients.” — Jo Varshney“Biology is complex. We need to understand it enough to create a codified version of that biology.” — Jo Varshney“If you're just using machine learning-based methods, you may not get the right features to see the accuracy that you would see with the hybrid AI approach that we take.” — Jo Varshney“Focus on validation and showing some real-world outcomes [rather than] just building the marketing outcome because, ultimately, we want it to get to the patients. We want to know if the technology really works. If it doesn't work, you can still pivot.” — Jo VarshneyLinks:VeriSIM LifeJo Varshney on LinkedInJo Varshney on XResources for Computer Vision Teams:LinkedIn – Connect with Heather.Computer Vision Insights Newsletter – A biweekly newsletter to help bring the latest machine learning and computer vision research to applications in people and planetary health.Computer Vision Strategy Session – Not sure how to advance your computer vision project? Get unstuck with a clear set of next steps. Schedule a 1 hour strategy session now to advance your project.

Today’s guest believes that decoding the immune system is at the heart of improving drug efficacy. He is currently focused on this effort as the CEO and Co-founder of Immunai – a company that is building an AI model of the immune system to facilitate the development of next-generation immunomodulatory therapeutics. Noam Solomon begins our conversation by detailing his professional history and how it led to Immunai before explaining what Immunai does and why this work is vital for healthcare. Then, we discover how understanding the immune system will help to improve how drugs work in our bodies, how the team at Immunai accomplishes its goals, the major challenges of working with complex ML models, and some helpful recommendations for processing the high-dimensional nature of biological data. Noam also explains the collaborative landscape of Immunai, how the evolution of technology made his work possible, Immunai’s plans for the future, and his advice to others on a similar career path. Key Points:Unpacking Noam Solomon’s professional journey that led to his founding of Immunai. What Immunai does and why this work is vital for the healthcare industry. How understanding the immune system will help to improve drug efficacy. Exploring how Noam and his team use AI to accomplish their goals. The standardization of data and other challenges of working with complex ML models. Techniques for handling the high-dimensional nature of biological data.How ML experts collaborate with other domains to inform and build Immunai’s models. The technical advancements that have made Noam’s work possible. His advice to other leaders of AI-powered startups, and imagining the future of Immunai. How to connect with Noam and his work.  Quotes:“First, let’s talk about the problem, which is today, getting a drug from IND approval to FDA approval—which is the process of doing clinical trials—has less than a 10% chance of success, usually about a 5% chance, takes more than 10 years, and more than $2 billion of open immune therapy.” — Noam Solomon“Different people respond differently to the same drug, and the reason they respond differently is because their immune system is different.” — Noam Solomon“You first need to fall in love with the problems. Many ML people—physicists, mathematicians, computer scientists—we love building models; we love solving puzzles. In biology, you need to really fall in love with the question you are trying to answer.” — Noam Solomon“It’s a great decade for biology.” — Noam SolomonLinks:Noam Solomon on LinkedInNoam Solomon on XImmunaiResources for Computer Vision Teams:LinkedIn – Connect with Heather.Computer Vision Insights Newsletter – A biweekly newsletter to help bring the latest machine learning and computer vision research to applications in people and planetary health.Computer Vision Strategy Session – Not sure how to advance your computer vision project? Get unstuck with a clear set of next steps. Schedule a 1 hour strategy session now to advance your project.