Over the past few years, researchers have started using AI to capture signals from our voices in hopes of quickly diagnosing diseases. Academics and startup founders in the nascent field talked about the potential benefits, as well as the privacy implications, of this technology at the Milken Institute Future of Health Summit on Tuesday.
“There’s a very rich set of data for us to look at,” said Nate Blaylock, chief technology officer at voice AI company Canary Speech. “Our technology extracts over 12 million biomarkers per minute of speech.”
Using voice biomarkers for early disease detection is a hot research area, and has spawned several buzzy startups. Kintsugi Health, used in call centers and telehealth platforms, aims to detect signs of depression and anxiety in speech. Winterlight Labs focuses on dementia, and Canary Speech works on a range of conditions, including Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.
About the Author Reprints
To submit a correction request, please visit our Contact Us page.
STAT encourages you to share your voice. We welcome your commentary, criticism, and expertise on our subscriber-only platform, STAT+ Connect