New Delhi: With a focus on developing AI-based solutions that support key national health programmes in the country, IIT Delhi and AIIMS Delhi signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Tuesday to establish a Centre of Excellence for Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare (AI-CoE).
The two premier institutions were awarded a ₹330 crore grant last year under the ministry of education’s ‘Make AI in India, Make AI Work for India’ initiative, following a competitive selection process.
The AI-CoE will serve as the implementation arm for this grant.
“This MoU marks the beginning of far-reaching collaborative research that has the potential to change the face of healthcare in the country,” said M Srinivas, director of AIIMS Delhi.
Rangan Banerjee, director of IIT Delhi, noted that the partnership aims to harness AI for accessible and affordable healthcare. “We are delighted to be shaping this national centre of excellence and hope that our output will impact the lives of Indians,” he said.
The Centre will be jointly led by Krithika Rangarajan, chief project manager at AIIMS Delhi, and Chetan Arora, chief project manager at IIT Delhi.
“We look forward to guiding the marriage of healthcare with technology. We remain focused on keeping patients at the centre of this effort and hope to build mechanisms that would benefit every citizen of the country,” Rangarajan said.
Arora added that the AI-CoE will serve as a key research and resource centre at the national and international level. “Our aim is to develop cutting-edge AI solutions, upskill our healthcare providers and improve the accessibility of quality healthcare to remote and marginalised sections of our population,” he said.
