“We believe that AI is offering unprecedented opportunities to transform healthcare delivery around the world and we are highly motivated to deliver the needed change through innovation, co-created with our clinical and academic partners,” said Henk van Houten. “The biggest challenge is combining AI and other technologies with a deep understanding of the context in which they are used, which is why Philips puts people – patients, clinicians and individual citizens – at the center of healthcare transformation and innovation.”
Philips ranks among the top three companies in the world in terms of AI-related patent applications in healthcare. Practical examples of AI-driven innovations developed by Philips that the jury took into account when deciding on the winner include a machine learning based system called OncoSignal that measures signaling pathway activity in individual tumor samples to diagnose different cancer types and predict targeted therapy response; the company’s SmartSleep DeepSleep Headband, which applies deep learning to classifying sleep staging based on EEG data and providing auditory stimulation to the wearer to boost deep sleep so that they get more rest. Philips’ Intellivue Guardian patient monitoring/early-warning scoring system, its CareSage predictive analytics for elderly care, and its IntelliSpace Precision Medicine Oncology clinical decision support (CDS) software were also cited in the award nomination.
“Today’s award is not just an acknowledgement of the innovation power of Philips, it’s a recognition of all the hard work and effort that has been put in over the years by the hospitals, doctors, clinicians, patient advocates, universities, and consumer groups that collaborate with us to improve people’s lives,” Henk van Houten added. “Without them, it would simply not have been possible.”
Founded in 1914, Philips Research is one of the largest private research organizations in the world, employing approximately 1,200 professionals and 50 nationalities. It has a global presence with sites in Europe, North America, China and India.