To receive regular updates

In this episode, Dr. T.Y. Alvin Liu, Inaugural Director, James P Gills Jr MD and Heather Gills AI Innovation Center at Johns Hopkins Medicine shares his journey in healthcare AI, with a focus on image analysis and real-world applications.

Dr. Liu discusses the FDA-approved autonomous AI system for diabetic retinopathy screening, which enables early detection in primary care settings and improves screening adherence. He outlines successful AI implementations at Johns Hopkins, including prior authorization pilots using generative AI and the importance of operational understanding in deployment. He also discussed the intersection of value-based medicine and artificial intelligence, and the challenges of implementing successful AI programs. 

At the enterprise level, Dr. Liu emphasizes the need for strong AI governance to assess safety, effectiveness, and ROI. He outlines key challenges for AI startups, especially around reimbursement and regulation, and urges them to pursue sustainable business models. He also suggests closer collaboration among startups, VCs, and integrated health systems to bridge the gap between innovation and real-world adoption, essential for scaling AI responsibly and delivering long-term value in healthcare. Take a listen.

Dr. T. Y. Alvin Liu, the James P. Gills Jr. M.D. and Heather Gills Rising Professor of Artificial Intelligence in Ophthalmology, was born and raised in Hong Kong. He subsequently attended Phillips Exeter Academy, Cornell University (B.A.) and Columbia University (M.D.). He completed his ophthalmology residency and vitreoretinal fellowship training at the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins University (JHU), and was named an “Emerging Vision Scientist” by the National Alliance for Eye and Vision Research in 2020. Currently, he holds dual faculty appointments at the JHU School of Medicine and School of Engineering. He is also the Inaugural Director of the James P. Gills Jr. M.D. and Heather Gills Artificial Intelligence Innovation Center, which is the first dedicated endowed ($10 million) AI center at the JHU School of Medicine. 

As an interdisciplinary strategist at the intersection of venture capital, startup companies and health systems, he specializes in the implementation and scaling of healthcare artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in both clinical and operational domains, for example autonomous AI for diabetic retinopathy screening and generative AI for revenue cycle management. He has operational experience in various processes that are critical for AI deployment, including incentive alignment of stakeholders, IT integration, workflow design, key performance indicator establishment, and change management.

In addition to being an advisor/Medical Director for startup companies and a venture partner at a healthcare-focused investment fund, he has also completed executive education coursework at Wharton (venture capital), Harvard (digital transformation in healthcare), and Johns Hopkins (value-based healthcare).

In terms of AI governance, he holds leadership positions on a health system and national level. At Johns Hopkins Medicine, he is a co-chair of the AI and Data Trust Council, a leadership team that oversees all AI initiates across the entire health system in the imaging, clinical and operational domains. On a national level, he is a member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology AI Committee, and represents ophthalmology at the American Medical Association AI Specialty Society Collaborative Meeting.