On June 6, 2024, marking China’s 29th National Eye Care Day, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center (ZOC) unveiled its ChatZOC large language model in ophthalmology. Developed through AI-powered research collaboration, this initiative pioneers an intelligent pathway for safeguarding public eye health. At the launch event, Professor Lin Haotian, President of ZOC, elaborated on ChatZOC’s development and application scenarios.
Indigenous Innovation: Breaking Through Core Technologies
Recent years witnessed AI models evolving from specialized tools to versatile systems, propelled by data, algorithms, and computing power. This paradigm shift has ushered in a new era for medical AI. To advance high-quality eye health services and foster innovation-driven productivity, ZOC initiated the indigenous development of ChatZOC in March 2023.
Built upon a high-quality ophthalmic knowledge base integrated with ZOC’s big data platform and the latest clinical guidelines, ChatZOC underwent multidimensional standardized training. Leveraging deep learning and natural language processing technologies, local collaborating industry’s computing infrastructure empowered ChatZOC to efficiently process massive datasets and perform complex computations. This significantly enhanced its scientific accuracy in ophthalmic Q&A, achieving state-of-the-art performance.
Multidimensional Applications: Empowering Clinical Practice
In January 2024, ChatZOC completed local deployment, enabling comprehensive support across "clinical services, education, research, prevention, and management."
- Clinical Assistance: Synthesizes complex medical data to facilitate doctor-patient communication and decision-making.
- Medical Education: Simulates patient interactions to cultivate diagnostic reasoning and empathetic care among trainees.
- Research: Serves as an intelligent academic assistant for knowledge management and discovery.
- Hospital Management: Delivers 24/7 patient consultations, boosting service efficiency by 75% with equivalent staffing.
Technological Breakthroughs: Elevating Eye Care Quality
Eye health impacts all age groups throughout life. Amid growing needs from population aging, AI models like ChatZOC address critical gaps in traditional healthcare, expanding access to quality ophthalmic resources. Moving forward, ZOC will deploy ChatZOC within multimodal remote screening systems (land/sea/air), enabling an intelligent three-tiered diagnosis model that transcends geographical barriers. The integration of "devices + experts + AI" will expand and extend high-quality eye care services to underserved communities.
