Google Develops AI Capable of Detecting Illness Symptoms Through Sound

Considering what you may already know about AI, it might not come as a shock that Google, along with other entities, is starting to leverage audio cues to detect early indicators of illness.

How exactly? Bloomberg has reported that Google has equipped one of its core AI systems with 300 million sound snippets, encompassing coughs, sniffles, and heavy breaths, to pinpoint individuals, for instance, who are dealing with tuberculosis.

Currently, it has partnered with an Indian enterprise — Salcit Technologies, a pioneering AI firm in respiratory health — to integrate this innovation into smartphones. This could offer crucial support to populations at high risk in areas where healthcare services are limited.

This initiative is not Google’s introductory venture into the digitization of human senses. Its investment division has also funded at least one company that is exploring the use of AI to literally smell out diseases.