Symposium "Artificial Intelligence in Public Health Research

The symposium was part of the BMG-funded project “AI-supported Data Analysis & Visualization of Pandemics” (AI-DAVis PANDEMICS) and thus embedded in a series of events that took place this year in Berlin and Boston as part of the BMG's Data for Health initiative. The aim of the collaborations and discussions within the initiative is to make health data usable for global public health research.

Dr. Susanne Ozegowski, Director General, Division 5 “Digitalisation & Innovation”, Federal Ministry of Health, and RKI President Prof. Dr. Lars Schaade opened the symposium and warmly welcomed the approximately 100 guests on site and up to 150 participants online.

15 speakers from the USA and Europe, with significant WHO participation, presented research findings and insights into the five topic areas:

• AI-Supported Decision Making in Public Health
• AI-Supported Diagnostic and Imaging Tools
• Technology Showcase
• Privacy Preserving AI Tools in Public Health Research
• Climate Change and Public Health

The two keynote speeches by Dr. Hendrik Strobelt from the MIT-IBM Watson AI Lab on "Trustworthy AI by Human-AI Collaboration" and Prof. Dr. Jochen Lennerz from the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School on "Fostering Innovation - Navigating Regulation, Public Health and Clinical Care" provided a substantive framework for the presentations.

The poster exhibition of the RKI ZKI-PH PhD students provided an opportunity for scientific exchange, discussion of results and initiation of new collaborations. The symposium not only addressed the potential of AI for public health research, but also laid the groundwork for further collaborations aimed at revolutionising public health research through innovative AI applications. The relevance of the event and the broad participation of key stakeholders underline its role in advancing the AI landscape in healthcare.

Discussions and collaborations within the Data for Health initiative will continue over the coming months to drive innovation and progress in public health research.

The next "AI in Public Health Research" symposium of the RKI ZKI-PH is planned for May 14th-15th, 2025 as part of the AI-DAVis PANDEMICS project. Pre-registration is possible at ai-in-public-health[at}rki.de