38927 Business models for artificial intelligence in healthcare

27 Business models for artificial intelligence in healthcare Introduction and objectivesCommonly medical technology is defined as the research and business area dedicated to the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of diseases using technologies consisting of devices and/or software and processes.Thus, within this broad field a multitude of different application areas are addressed as well as a plethora of biomedical devices is used and services are offered.Such medical devices can range from very simple instruments (such as thermometers), over mobile and body-worn vital sensors to highly complex imaging systems such as single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) as well as tele-manipulators and partially automated surgical robots.Examples for services are, e.g., maintenance and/or support, calibration, regular updates of software components, or integrated leasing and maintenance offerings for complex devices.In addition to that, the advent of artificial intelligence (AI) is opening another dimension of complexity and opportunity at the same time.Advances in AI not only have the potential to revolutionize medical technology, but are already doing so by significantly improving efficiency, precision and personalization in healthcare.Furthermore, the integration and use of AI within the healthcare systems will also have significant impact and will change processes of care delivery, distribution of cost and revenues.After briefly introducing the idea of business models and providing some prominent AI-based applications in healthcare, this contribution links these two topics and shows how, among other things, AI methods could be used to innovate existing business models in the medical device and software industry and solve some of the numerous challenges in healthcare in the future.