Hi Uiux,
I think Akida deserves its own category:
-Ultra high sensitivity (98%+)
In doing so it could set new benchmark requirements worldwide. Once the World Health Organisation or leading countries realise how effective the Nanose device is it may become the new gold standard.
Think of all the benefits associated:
-Really high accuracy (98%+)
-Low cost per test ($2-3) compared to existing tools
-Near instantaneous results (30 seconds between patients including gas purging)
-Low power usage. This means less contribution to global warming and long battery life of device
-Portable
-Reusable. Less waste means improved sustainability.
-Non-invasive testing
-Less pressure and potentially less risk to front-line workers. If testing times are quicker, less nurses are required at testing facilities. This reduces duration of shifts / overtime required, resulting in less fatigue placed on workers and hence burden on the health system.
It may even be possible to automate testing stations to minimise exposure risks to front-line workers: People line up, go into a booth and blow into the device. The device self purges with gas, blowing tips are sanitised or replaced, then the next person comes in. If this works nurses may not even need to be present with the testing, instead being there just to talk to people, make then feel comfortable and help with issues. I can't comment around regulations but given the huge benefits associated, this may result in the need to have them changed urgently (if governments can save millions on testing and defer further health spending, it'll probably happen at some point).
-Lower rate of false identification than almost all other diagnostic equipment. This means less people needing to isolate and not being able to work. Plus governments can make decisions like closing borders quicker and with greater confidence, resulting in a stronger economy.
-Ability to immediately identify type of disease
-Possibility of being able to identify variants of say Covid? I'm not sure on this one as it would require sufficient sensor material types onboard so that there is enough information for Akida to accurately tell. If possible this would in turn prevent the need to send a sample off to a lab for formal testing, which can take days. This is a huge time saving advantage in a pandemic where decisions like closing borders to infected countries can be done immediately. This can also stop pandemics before they spread by isolating cases.
On this note, imagine if instead of countries rushing to make effective vaccines, that they focus on developing sensors to accurately detect the disease. Something like Nanose might detect a new disease but not have sufficient sensor types to classify it correctly, instead labelling it something generic like the flu. However, if countries tried to isolate everyone with the flu they might need to isolate a huge portion of their population and go into lockdown. With scientists focusing on the sensor avenue instead of (or in addition to) developing a vaccine, it may become possible to shut down a new virus (if placed in suitable places like airports) before sufficient time has passed for vaccine development + 3 stages of clinical trials. There would potentially be no need to vaccinate the entire population (at least not under emergency scenarios. And given proper time to develop, test and run trials there would hopefully be less hesitancy around getting vaccinated. If stopped from spreading quick enough there might be no need at all to vaccinate people as the disease might get wiped out before it's ready to go).
Negatives - there aren't really any of true concern I can think of but these may include:
-People may need time to adopt trust in the AI / machine learning black box algorithm. However, like it or not this is the way the future is heading and people will need to accept this is where it's all going. Versioning of software could be used to ensure only officially accepted algorithms are used in devices. Interestingly, if someone suspects they may have had a false test result, it would be possible to save your diagnostic data and run it through an improved software version at a later date to confirm the result without having to undergo further testing.
-There may be low accuracy initially, though this could be improved quickly with more positive case data.
With all the associated benefits, it may become mandatory to use Akida embedded devices for all future diagnostics in certain countries or potentially even world wide. Rules could be put in place to prevent anything that can't meet a minimum 90-95% accuracy in identification, even in emergency situations. This would mean lower costs combined with higher accuracy and reliability. COVID-19 could become the last true "pandemic" if future viruses are shut down quick enough. It's only a matter of time till Akida is everywhere.
Pure speculation, DYOR
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