It is estimated that more than 55 million people are currently living with dementia around the world, a number expected to grow rapidly.
Launched today, the NEURii collaboration aims to translate healthcare data and digital sciences into projects that can enhance the quality of life of people living with dementia and contribute to a national data infrastructure in the UK.
During the two-year pilot, NEURii will use high-quality, real-world data alongside artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to deliver projects that have the potential to make a meaningful difference to patients’ lives while maintaining data security and public trust. The impact of these projects will be measured to explore further opportunities to scale up digital health efforts across the UK and beyond.
Professor Andrew Morris, Director of HDR UK, said:
“Almost one million people in the UK are living with dementia. This new public-private partnership aims to gain a deeper understanding of the disease through trustworthy use of large datasets of anonymised health data in secure environments. We will take forward a set of pilot projects and engage with the public. Our aim is to produce new data-driven products that will benefit patients and their families in detecting dementia, predicting its progress and better managing the disease.”
NEURii’s model will enable the identification of pioneering data and digital science, the mentoring of talented scientists and the translation of health prototypes into practical and accessible products.
By combining diverse digital biomarkers that can be acquired non-invasively in real world settings (e.g., speech from conversation) with health data, and analysing them with tailored AI algorithms, NEURii aims to create innovative digital solutions.
The UK is a leader in digital technology investment and research across areas such as genomics, health data science, and AI and ML, with rich and diverse health-related data. Through the expertise and capabilities of the NEURii collaborators, it is hoped that the novel approach will provide a launch-pad for new digital products that can contribute to solving the ongoing challenges of dementia and neurodegenerative conditions.
