Olympus Announces Co-Development Agreement with ai4gi

Olympus, a global technology leader in designing and delivering innovative solutions for medical and surgical procedures, among other core businesses, announced today its co-development agreement with ai4gi, a commercial joint venture between Satis Operations and Imagia. Their Artificial Intelligence (AI) solution for real-time clinical decision support during screening and surveillance colonoscopy procedures will be exclusively offered by Olympus America Inc. (OAI). This co-development agreement is intended to raise the bar for all physicians to ultimately improve clinical outcomes, reduce overall costs and enhance quality of life for patients.

The integration of AI into the colonoscopy procedure holds great promise for the future of GI screening for physicians and patients. Ai4gi initially developed this clinical decision support tool using a large volume of unaltered endoscopic colonoscopy videos from global physician experts in combination with deep learning training models. By incorporating AI, Olympus is investing in technology that will elevate all clinicians while unlocking new ways to treat disease for patients. This is the first co-development agreement of its kind in the U.S. market and is the first time an AI proof-of-concept has been demonstrated clinically in real-time in a screening colonoscopy application. 

Colon cancer continues to be a major health issue in the U.S. According to the American Cancer Society, approximately 140,000 Americans—men and women—are diagnosed with colon cancer every year, and over 50,000 die from the disease. While colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cancer killer in the U.S. among men and women combined, it is the most detectable and treatable form if detected early. Olympus is the leading manufacturer of medical devices used to peer inside the human body to help medical practitioners detect, diagnose, and treat gastrointestinal diseases such as colon cancer.

"ai4gi's solutions to early colon cancer recognition are going to be a game-changer in the field of Gastroenterology" said Dr. Michael Byrne, CEO of Satis Operations and Clinical Lead at ai4gi. "These solutions are what the industry needs for more timely and more effective patient care, and Olympus is an ideal industry partner to drive clinical adoption of this technology. As doctors, we all need help to improve our practice, so why not use the best technology available?"

"We are thrilled to add Artificial Intelligence to our already powerful endoscopy portfolio which we feel is an emerging and essential core competency in this space," said Kurt Heine, Group Vice President of the Endoscopy Division at Olympus America Inc. "Our vision is to add Artificial Intelligence to our platform to improve the assessment of colon cancer screening as well as potentially other endoscopic procedures. Better visibility, along with increased efficiency, can bring us c