Digital Precision Medicine at USB: Innovation Focus on Clinical AI launched
The University Hospital Basel (USB) is further advancing the digital transformation of medicine by consolidating its activities within the newly established Innovation Focus Clinical AI – Digital Precision Medicine at USB, led by Prof. Dr. Viktor Kölzer. The initiative aims to make better use of medical data, improve diagnostics, and provide targeted support for healthcare professionals in their daily clinical practice.
2026-07-17, 10:36
Leveraging Data Intelligently
Large volumes of medical data are generated in everyday clinical practice. These data are often stored across different systems and can only be combined with considerable effort. At the same time, medical decision-making is becoming increasingly complex. The Innovation Focus Clinical AI creates the technical and organizational foundations required to use these data safely and effectively for patient care.
AI as a Support Tool in Clinical Practice
The Innovation Focus develops and integrates AI applications across the entire patient journey—from diagnostics to clinical decision support. A particular emphasis is placed on oncology. Using AI, information from medical imaging, pathology, molecular analyses, and clinical data can be integrated and prepared for tumour boards and other interdisciplinary decision-making processes. In addition, AI solutions are being applied in areas such as radiology, digital pathology, and clinical documentation. USB consistently follows a human-centered AI approach: AI is designed to support and relieve healthcare professionals—not replace them. Responsibility for medical decisions always remains with the clinical care team.
Research, Innovation, and Strong Partnerships
The Innovation Focus builds on the long-standing collaboration between medicine, research, informatics, and data science at USB. Together with the University of Basel and other partners, new methods for medical data analysis and clinical AI are being developed and tested under real-world healthcare conditions. A key partner is the Department of Biomedical Engineering (DBE) at the University of Basel, which conducts internationally recognized research in medical image analysis, computational pathology, and artificial intelligence.
Benefits for Patients
The targeted use of AI aims to enable faster and more accurate diagnoses, improve support for therapeutic decision-making, and advance personalized medicine. At the same time, administrative processes can be streamlined, allowing healthcare professionals to dedicate more time to direct patient care.
Through the Innovation Focus Clinical AI, USB is laying the foundation for a future-oriented, data-driven healthcare system and strengthening its position as a leading center for clinical AI and digital precision medicine.