The Future of Medicine is in Everyone’s Pocket Today
Smartphone is the most technologically advanced devices mankind has ever created.
→ To prove this point, Google has built a self driving car using nothing but a Pixel phone
Each car is outfitted with its own Pixel phone, which used its camera to detect and understand signals from the world around it. In order to sense lanes, avoid collisions and read traffic signs, the phone uses machine learning running on the Pixel Neural Core, which contains a version of an Edge TPU.
AI / AR on mobile
Not only is the modern smartphone one of the most powerful devices mankind has ever created but its abilities are rapidly increasing.
- Apple M1 with 5nm allows 16 billion transistors per chip.
- Apple unveils new iPad Pro with breakthrough LiDAR Scanner
- Android Pixel phones have a radar module
- Both Android & iOS have dedicated AI/ML cores
These new features along with the current sensors enable the smartphone to be an ideal medical device.
Smartphone Sensors for Health Monitoring and Diagnosis
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6539461/
Combining the processing power, sensors and connectivity of the smartphone with BLE is a powerful combination.
Note:BLE has never been easier on mobile:
We know many important physiological signals are possible to read from noninvasive scanning.
The iWatch saves peoples lives on a regular basis by reading signals on the wrist.
CEO of Apple believes wearables are the most promising future technology.
The future of wearables is very exciting as highlighted by my article about the intersection of fashion, tech and healthcare.
The “magic” of tech fused with the “beauty” of fashion to promote the “wellness” of healthcare.
- Real time physiological feedback in clothing will revolutionize health care.
- Fashion has centered around visual aspects now it will add technology.
- Teaching fashion, tech and health as one integrated course.
- If the technology works perfectly but it is ugly, no one will use it. If the technology is somewhat flawed but it is aesthetically gorgeous people will forgive you. One can never underestimate the power of attractiveness.
- Clothing will now have not only an esthetic function but also a technological function.
- Medical devices that are aesthetically pleasing are used more frequently. These devices can disrupt the field by simply enhancing user experience.
Leading to “Where are Wearables?”
Both Apple and Google have turned the smartphone into a healthcare research lab.
- ResearchKit helps medical researchers gather robust data for studies.
- Advancing health research with Google Health Studies
Both at my current job and outside projects have shown what amazing things can be done with machine learning (ML).
- Artificial intelligence model detects asymptomatic Covid-19 infections through cellphone-recorded coughs.
And
From the Federation of American Scientists (FAS)
“One can imagine a day where people could, for instance, 1) use their cell phone to check their own cancer or heart disease biomarker levels weekly to understand their own personal baseline and trends …”
Please look for the next article on ML and mobile for healthcare coming soon …
The future of medicine is in everyone’s pocket today.
~Ash
