Dive Brief:
- Johnson & Johnson has partnered with Nvidia and Amazon Web Services, or AWS, to support the use of artificial intelligence in surgery, the medtech company said Wednesday.
- The Polyphonic AI Fund for Surgery builds on J&J’s existing collaboration with Nvidia and creation of a digital platform for in-house and third-party surgical applications.
- Through the fund, J&J, Nvidia and AWS will evaluate and support projects related to AI model development, data engineering and management, and AI governance.
Dive Insight:
J&J partnered with Nvidia in March 2024 to support surgical software and devices that enable real-time data analysis in the operating room. The pact combined J&J’s medtech knowledge with Nvidia computer chips that underpin AI models. Three months later, J&J created the Polyphonic platform to support the development and deployment of surgical software.
Enlisting AWS for the Polyphonic AI Fund for Surgery adds cloud computing capabilities to the existing medtech and AI expertise. The partners will provide resources and mentorship to help developers of AI software for surgery.
J&J is offering up to $100,000 in grant funding and mentorship through its Quickfire Challenge program. The company uses the program to crowdsource ways to tackle specific health challenges. The Polyphonic challenge is seeking ideas for AI technologies that improve surgical decision-making, for example by reducing cognitive load and potentially serving as “a surgeon co-pilot.”
The fund is also open to applicants who are developing AI technologies to strengthen data management and governance processes, as well as drive surgical efficiency. Soft tissue surgery, including colorectal, bariatric, thoracic, urology, gynecology and general surgery, is of particular interest to J&J.
Successful applicants may be eligible to receive computing tools and technologies, including access to computer chips and related software for accelerated computing, cloud platform and application services, machine learning and AI modeling toolkits, and other software development kits.
The current call for applications closes on Aug. 22. J&J is aiming to reveal the successful applicants in September or October. Beyond that, applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and awardees will be disclosed quarterly through the end of 2026.
