HONG KONG – A Chinese med-tech company plans to take to market what it claims is the first electrocardiography (ECG) diagnostic machine powered by AI, but as it moves to markets beyond China, it could face significant competition.

Neura Inc., which focuses on AI-powered behavioral intelligence that provides real-world insights for health organizations, governments and consumer brands, has revealed the adoption of its Viruscore COVID-19 predictive testing solution.

The COVID-19 pandemic has sparked some innovation in testing, but not all that innovation has made it to market. Michael Mina, an assistant professor of epidemiology at the Chan School of Public Health at Harvard University, said on an Aug. 7 conference call that the U.S. FDA’s “archaic view” of testing is impeding the use of paper strip tests he said would turn the tide in the effort to contain the pandemic.

People with diabetes are at risk of developing diabetic retinopathy (DR), an eye condition that can cause vision loss and blindness. However, early detection and treatment can slow its progress. To that end, the Food and Drug Administration has cleared the way for Eyenuk Inc. to market its Eyeart autonomous artificial intelligence (AI) system for DR screening in the U.S.

Developers of tests for the SARS-CoV-2 virus have gained a tremendous amount of experience in a very small amount of time, and of all the media for sampling, saliva offers the easiest route for test administration. The U.S. FDA’s Tim Stenzel said on the Aug. 5 testing town hall, however, that the FDA and developers have discovered that this is an extremely difficult medium to work with.