Google Licenses AI Tech for Breast Cancer Detection

Google Health has licensed its AI technology to iCAD, a developer of cancer detection equipment, for use in mammography scans.

Under the deal iCAD will integrate Google's computer vision system into a tool to detect breast cancer. and use Google Cloud services to power its data infrastructure. The computer vision-powered product will then be commercially sold to health care providers. 

“By combining the power of our technologies and teams, we strengthen our fight against breast cancer and positively impact the lives of women and their loved ones across the globe,” said Stacey Stevens, president and CEO of iCAD.

The deal marks Google Health’s first commercial agreement covering its mammography AI model.

“Google Health’s AI tech could be used to make health care more available, more accessible, more accurate,” said Greg Corrado, head of health AI at Google. “But effecting change like this will only be possible if we work closely with forward-looking partners, those with a deep tradition of pioneering innovation and the market experience and wherewithal to put innovations into real workflows.”

ICAD also will incorporate Google Health's mammography AI technology into ProFound AI Risk, a clinical decision support tool designed to provide a short-term breast cancer risk estimation.