In the movie ‘Elysium (2013 Neil Blomkamp)’, an artificial intelligence (AI) diagnosis and treatment device appears. When the patient enters the capsule, the machine scans the patient’s whole body to diagnose the disease, and immediately implements the appropriate treatment. From diagnosis to treatment, it only takes a few minutes.
Of course, in reality, such medical technology and medical devices do not exist. However, it cannot be dismissed as a movie-like story. Because there are really people who want to make these cinematic diagnoses and treatments a reality. Wooshik Choi, the CEO of Deepnoid, is one of those people. He believes that the automatic diagnostic treatment equipment in the movie is possible. If you borrow the power of data and AI.
At 11 am on the 29th, Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas in Samseong-dong, Seoul. A man with a tense expression stood in front of the microphone. His name is Wooshik Choi, the CEO of Deepnoid. Deepnoid, a medical AI company, has been established for 15 years.
Deepnoid has built a ‘Deepfax’ medical system at the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service. It also conducted joint research and construction of AI solutions with high-level general hospitals. Telemedicine, digital pathology, and image reading services are also being implemented.
Last year, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety obtained a medical device manufacturing license for Deep Chest (DEEP:CHEST-XR-03), a chest X-ray image detection and diagnosis assistance software. Deepnoid is preparing to apply for approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for DeepChest. In addition, 17 ‘DEEP:AI’ and 2 ‘DEEP:PACS’ products were approved by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.
Although it started with medical AI, CEO Choi has no intention of limiting his business to medicine. “Medical is a small market, but once you enter, there is little competition. However, there is no reason to limit ourselves to medical care. If we only look at the domestic market, the limits are clear, so we are trying to revitalize our existing business – expand our business – and enter overseas markets.”
CEO Choi introduces Deepnoid as a technology company. The product of concern is ‘Deep Pie’ (DEEP:PHI), which was released for the first time on this day. DeepFi is an AI no-coding research platform.
AI research requires expert-level coding skills. You must have knowledge of AI research methods here. Expensive equipment and development environment are essential. Not only that. Collaboration tools are also required. DeepFi is a platform that solves this problem. App development is possible without coding. DeepFi is provided in the form of software as a service (SaaS) and built-in private cloud.
CEO Choi plans to conduct an education project so that DeepFi can be effectively used in various industries. The education project of ‘DEEP:EDU (Deep Edu)’, a Deep Pie Academy, is scheduled to be expanded nationwide. In addition, the telemedicine business is in full swing under the cooperation of local hospitals and healthcare companies in Southeast Asia.
There is still a lot of work to be done, but there is still more work to be done in the future. First of all, you need to earn more money. The sales target for this year is the mid-range of 4 billion won. It is still disappointing that there is still an unclear payment system for medical AI devices and industry support at the ministry level. CEO Choi said.
“Regulation in Korea follows the development of industry and technology. The government is also interested in it, but it seems that they are still waiting. What companies desperately need is eventually finding a place to sell the product and a buyer to pay for it. Ultimately, you need a catalyst.”
It is difficult for new companies such as Deepnoid to penetrate the gaps between traditional companies that have ‘stored’ medical devices and medical software in medical institutions. CEO Choi compared this to the automobile industry.
“If you look at Tesla’s relationship with the traditional auto industry, companies that made the rules will want to keep them. So we’re trying to come up with a new way.”
Related articles
The global digital healthcare market is growing at a rate of 30% every year. The market size is expected to reach USD 54.4 billion (about KRW 605 trillion) by 2025. The government plans to invest about 20 trillion won in data, network, and artificial intelligence industries over the next three years. In particular, government investment in AI is perhaps an opportunity for Deepnoid.
CEO Choi asked. “If we compete based on data and AI, won’t we also have a competitive edge compared to legacy companies?”
