Automated retinal diagnostics for early screening of diabetic eye disease through use of artificial intelligence

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the most common cause of vision loss among people with diabetes and is the leading cause of preventable blindness. Within 10 years of onset, 75 percent of diabetics will have some degree of DR. However, vision loss due to diabetic retinopathy is preventable with early detection and intervention. Early detection of DR in mild and moderate stages of the disease through eye examination, can reduce the risk of blindness by 95%. If treated early, the procedures are inexpensive and uncomplicated. The gold standard of diagnosing DR is expensive and often unavailable in remote or developing parts of the world. Oivi is developing an affordable hand-held AI-powered camera to detect preventable, vision threatening eye-diseases – with its first focus being DR. The solution is based on application of artificial intelligence to automated image capture and analysis. Our device will be so easy to use that non-trained personnel in primary care facilities can perform a retinal scan in less than 30 seconds, eliminating the need of a trained ophthalmologist at initial diagnosis and maximizing screening of diabetic patients. The product is under development and is currently being tested and verified by pilot customers in India. The project is a feasibility study that will evaluate and target an international market. International commercialization of the product requires good preparatory work which entails market analysis and business strategy activities. The most central challenges in establishing the project are: 1. Access to information about markets and sales channels in different countries 2. Gathering the certification requirements of many different countries.