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AI Tech Sprint

AI Tech Sprint

AI Tech Sprints provide a novel approach to innovation to meet Veteran needs. AI Tech Sprints are three-month competitive engagements that foster collaboration between industry, academia, and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Teams compete to create AI-enabled tools that leverage federal data to address specific Veteran health care issues.

The National Artificial Intelligence Institute (NAII) leads AI Tech Sprints by making federal data available and incentivizing collaboration and innovation through the Government Innovation Framework, Challenge.Gov. Industry, academia, and nonprofit organizations are encouraged to work together, with input from VA researchers and clinicians. Sprint participants have access to several federal data sets, including synthetic VA data.

AI Tech Sprints result in innovations that address real-world health care challenges faced by Veterans.

- Gil Alterovitz, PhD, VHA Chief AI Officer, VA NAII Director

Sprint partners iteratively design an intervention using federal and private data. Teams receive access to:

  • large unique federal data sources (e.g., clinical trials, patents, experimental therapeutics, patients)
  • Veteran and expert perspectives
  • technical AI and machine learning support
  • feedback on demos and from users
  • longer-term partnership and/or funding opportunities

Top winners of the AI Tech Sprints receive prize money. Recognized prototypes may be invited to conduct a pilot of the product within VA or be introduced to another agency for next steps in product development. 

AI Tech Sprints  Four Principles

Current AI Tech Sprint

Provider Burnout

AI Tech Sprints

Innovators nationwide are competing in the newest AI Tech Sprint focused on reducing health care worker burnout. This sprint seeks to support health care workers by spurring the creation of cutting-edge AI solutions to reduce administrative burden associated with burnout.

The AI Tech Sprint has two areas of focus or "tracks." Applicants chose to apply for one or both tracks, depending on their interests.

  • The Track One AI Tech Sprint, “Ambient Dictation for Clinical Encounter Notes,”seeks AI-enabled solutions for generating transcripts and key details from ambient recordings of patient encounters in primary care, mental health, and specialty care settings with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
  • The Track Two AI Tech Sprint, “Community Care Document Processing,” seeks AI-powered systems capable of ingesting a diverse range of records from community providers such as patient encounters and complex medical documents, for the purposes of sharing key points with VA providers and increasing continuity of care for Veterans.

A staggering 152 teams are set to compete in this innovative journey, making it one of the most comprehensive and impactful tech sprints to date.

Frequently Asked Questions

View all FAQs

A: The solution that VA is seeking is EHR-agnostic. Once VA has a fully developed solution, it will have read/write into EHR. It is not tied directly to the Cerner adoption, but it may end up being rolled out at a similar time depending on how the timelines develop. The exact linkages will be determined later as the AI Tech Sprint is more focused on how well the system performs.

A: There will not be any synthetic or test data provided.

A: The data released at each gate will be in the form of static datasets. Each gate will have a different set of data used for evaluations.

A: There will be no sample or testing data (for either track) provided.

A: The format for Track 1 is a played audio recording of a patient encounter. Track 2 will include sample medical records (i.e., text, hand-written notes, faxes, scanned PDF, etc.).

A: A competitor’s system must run the data and provide the required output; and a maximum 10-minute demo must be provided. A PowerPoint may be provided, but it is not required. Please refer to the written materials distributed via email following kickoff call.

A: There is no further information about the nature or contents of the recordings as this would compromise the value and integrity of the competition.

A: No, participants must pull files and push the results into the S3 bucket. All buckets have a standard API built around them. This is the process for Track 2.

For Track 1, VA will play the audio file into the system, which requires the ability to access it and log into the system, and that is the confirmation needed for Gate 1.

A: VA will not send a file. A member of the AI Tech Sprint committee will play the recording into a microphone, or other audio device required for the application. If the solution is a SaaS application that has a URL, participants will have to provide login information. For a user interface that is not a SaaS application that has to be installed on a device, participants must inform the AI Tech Sprint committee as soon as possible so those can be installed. VA will log into the user interface and represent the visit by playing these files over the audio device provided. Then, participants will process and send it back into the external-facing S3 bucket within the allotted time.

A: This information will not be public.

Learn more about AI Tech Sprints!



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Any health information on this website is strictly for informational purposes and is not intended as medical advice. It should not be used to diagnose or treat any condition.