Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada - TheNewswire - September 9, 2024 - Satisfai Health Inc., a leading medical company providing artificial intelligence solutions in the field of Gastroenterology, is delighted to announce that, as the lead group in a consortium with Alimentiv, CANBUS (Canadian Bowel Ultrasound group), the University of British Columbia, and the University of Calgary, it is receiving non-dilutive co-investment from DIGITAL, Canada’s Global Innovation Cluster for digital technologies, to support work bringing Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to the practice of Intestinal Ultrasound (IUS) in patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) (Crohn’s disease and Ulcerative Colitis).

IBD is an increasingly common disease in Canada and across the globe. In recent years, IUS has been adopted by physicians as a safe, non-invasive, point-of-care, cost-effective ultrasound technology to aid in the assessment of response to treatment in patients with IBD. In skilled hands, IUS has been shown to be as accurate as more invasive, less safe, or more costly tests such as colonoscopy, CT, and MRI, and given how it is much more scalable and can reach more patients, it is an ideal tool to guide the management of IBD. However, gaining proficiency is difficult and it is an operator-dependent technique. With the quickly growing application of AI to medical imaging in general over the last several years, the opportunity to offer real-time AI guidance to gastroenterologists and allied health care practitioners performing IUS in IBD is immense.

With that in mind, Satisfai Health has been developing an AI tool for IUS called Sonai. Having clearly demonstrated a solid track record of success in developing AI tools in gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy for different disease states, and in particular for colonoscopy in IBD, Satisfai has formed an incredibly powerful consortium at the leading edge of AI solution development for IUS in IBD---both in clinical practice and clinical trials. Partners within the consortium include Alimentiv (a globally leading CRO in GI), CANBUS, the University of British Columbia, and the University of Calgary.

‘We are very grateful to DIGITAL for their huge support of what we are doing. Of all the successful work that Satisfai has done over the last several years, I am particularly excited about developing AI solutions for Intestinal Ultrasound in IBD,” said Dr Michael Byrne, Founder and Chairman of Satisfai Health, and Clinical Professor of Medicine in Vancouver. “Our Crohn’s and Colitis patients deserve much more easily accessible tests to assess their treatment response and to guide future treatments.”

“A non-invasive and portable solution that is completely safe and cheap is ideal, and we couldn’t be more excited at the chance to lead the Canadian and global democratization of IUS in IBD with our AI tool, Sonai”, said Solveig Johannessen, CEO of Satisfai Health.

“IUS is accurate for the assessment of IBD disease activity and complications and may detect early treatment responses to therapy that cannot be identified by routine colonoscopy”, said Dr Kerri Novak, Associate Professor of Medicine in Calgary, founder of CANBUS, and President-Elect of the International Bowel Ultrasound group, IBUS. “As a global leader in promoting adoption of Intestinal Ultrasound use in IBD, I am very eager to have AI tools that will further drive this adoption and increase proficiency. Satisfai’s work with Sonai is extremely exciting, and this consortium of partners supported by DIGITAL is incredibly well positioned to revolutionize this space with AI.”

“AI is revolutionizing global health systems by providing greater access and better outcomes for Canadians and for people around the world.” said Sue Paish, CEO of DIGITAL. “By uniting industry leaders, innovators and academic partners, we’re building the foundation for tomorrow’s breakthroughs and ensuring Canada remains at the cutting-edge of global AI innovation and commercialization. We’re proud to co-invest alongside innovators like Satisfai Health to build relevant AI solutions that advance human health while building global commercial pathways for Canadian companies.”

On behalf of the Board of Satisfai Health Inc.

Dr Michael F. Byrne

Chairman & Founder

About Satisfai Health Inc.

Satisfai Health Inc. is a leading medical solutions provider specializing in AI applications applied to large addressable markets in Gastroenterology. Satisfai’s solutions deliver real-time analysis of medical imagery and provide clinicians with real-time decision support intelligence that dramatically improves patient outcomes. Satisfai is supported by a highly respected board of medical clinicians and key opinion leaders who operate at the top of their fields in the many areas of Gastroenterology. Satisfai enjoys a strong voice on academic panels and leading GI societies as well as direct access to very large industry players seeking to adopt new AI technologies in Gastroenterology. For more information, visit www.satisfai.health or contact Dr Michael Byrne (info@satisfai.health).

About DIGITAL

DIGITAL is Canada’s leader in accelerating the development and commercialization of Canadian-made digital technologies that address some of the most pressing needs across our economy and society. DIGITAL’s model of collaborative innovation and co-investment advances the success of Canadian businesses through the development, adoption and commercialization of Canadian-made technologies while also growing a workforce that is skilled to fill the jobs of a growing digital economy.  

DIGITAL brings together businesses, academia, community and government agencies to solve some of industry and society’s biggest challenges - better and faster than any single organization can do on its own. Through the powerful model that combines cross-sector collaboration, Canadian IP creation and results-based co-investment, we unlock the potential of Canadian industry to lead and succeed in the digital world. 

Ahead of the curve starts here. For more information, visit www.digitalsupercluster.ca or contact Sydney Redpath, Director of Communications (media@digitalsupercluster.ca).

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