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Microsoft’s AI Head Builds Team Focused on Consumer Health
Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Microsoft’s artificial intelligence head Mustafa Suleyman is building a team focused on consumer health by hiring staff from a similar unit he once led at Google DeepMind, as the rival companies race to create lucrative applications from the cutting-edge technology.
The New Team
Suleyman, a British entrepreneur who co-founded DeepMind in 2010, has hired Dominic King, the former head of DeepMind’s health unit and a UK-trained surgeon, as vice-president of Microsoft AI’s new London-based health team. He has also poached Christopher Kelly, a clinical research scientist at DeepMind and a neonatal intensive care doctor at Evelina Children’s Hospital in London, as well as two others from his time at the AI start-up.
The Focus on Health
Health has become one of the growth areas in the AI boom. Consumers have often turned to the web for health-related queries, and a Deloitte survey this year found that 48% of respondents asked generative AI chatbots such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, and Claude health-focused questions. These include questions about specific health conditions, symptoms, and mental health. Microsoft AI’s health unit will focus on these types of consumer health applications using generative AI.
The Vision
The US tech group, which hired Suleyman this year, confirmed the creation of its new unit. “In our mission to inform, support, and empower everyone with responsible AI, health is a critical use case,” said Microsoft. “We continue to hire top talent in support of these efforts.”
Controversy and Departure
Google DeepMind’s health operation, founded by Suleyman in 2016, grew to a team of more than 100 people based in London. The unit had signed a five-year partnership with 10 UK NHS hospitals to process the medical data of 1.6 million patients and launched an app to monitor patients’ vital signs. However, DeepMind was later embroiled in controversy over its work for the UK health sector amid concerns about the security of patient data. This led to Suleyman’s unit being spun off in 2019 by parent company Alphabet into a Google unit in California led by David Feinberg, the former chief executive of Geisinger, one of the US’s largest private health groups.
Conclusion
Microsoft’s new consumer AI health division is a significant development in the rapidly growing field of health technology. The company’s focus on consumer health applications using generative AI is likely to drive significant revenue and transform the way people access healthcare.
FAQs
Q: What is the focus of Microsoft AI’s new London-based health team?
A: The team is focused on consumer health applications using generative AI.
Q: Who is leading the team?
A: Mustafa Suleyman, the former head of Google DeepMind, is leading the team.
Q: What is the goal of Microsoft AI’s health unit?
A: The goal is to create lucrative applications from generative AI in the healthcare sector.
Q: What is the current state of the health technology market?
A: The health technology market is rapidly growing, with a focus on consumer health applications and generative AI.
