Google has collaborated with the US Department of Defense to develop an Augmented Reality Microscope (ARM) powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI) to assist medical professionals in cancer detection. The ARM includes a large eyepiece and platform for examining traditional glass slides, as well as AI models housed in a computer tower. The AI detects cancer cells on slides and provides visual cues such as a bright green line that pinpoints cancer locations and a black and white heat map that assesses severity.

Dr. Niels Olson of the Defense Innovation Unit stressed that the ARM supplements rather than replaces pathologists, making it useful in remote laboratories and for pathology residents.

Aashima Gupta of Google Cloud revealed four ARM algorithms for breast, cervical, prostate cancer, and mitosis detection that were trained on DIU data with strict data privacy.

The DIU plans to make the ARM accessible to government users via the General Services Administration website, with an estimated cost of $90,000 to $100,000. This innovation promises to enhance cancer diagnosis capabilities, particularly in smaller healthcare facilities and educational settings.