Yesterday, I opened up my instagram and stumbled upon an article from The Guardian that discussed a new AI tool that can predict a person’s risk of more than 1000 diseases. The tool has been developed by experts and can potentially become of use to the main mass in a couple of years. That sounds pretty cool right?
The generative AI Tool was custom-built by experts from the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), the German Cancer Research Centre and the University of Copenhagen, using algorithmic concepts that are similar to those used in large language models (LLMs). The tool is named Delphi-2M, and can analyse a patient’s history, such as when illnesses were diagnosed, together with lifestyle factors such as smoking, weight or drinking alcohol. Based on these data it can forecast the health risks as rates over time, which can be compared to weather forecasts. It will be similar to, for example, a forecast of a 70% chance of rain this weekend. The advantage of this new AI tool compared to existing ones, is that it can predict more than 1000 diseases at once with an accuracy comparable to single-disease models.
The apparent benefits of these forecasts are the prevention of diseases. Nowadays, concepts like bio-hacking gain a lot of traction on individuals. Bio-hacking can be described as the search for optimal practices to let your body function as optimal as possible so an individual lives a healthy and long life. We all know the infra red, sauna, ice bathing gurus that tell people to live extremely healthy lives. Although it can come across somewhat extreme or obsessive, I think that there are definitely lessons to be learned from this community. Especially with the help of such an innovative AI forecaster it would be really interesting to see how far health ideals can be taken.
Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy parting occasionally and having a smoke, but I think that more awareness on healthy practices could have a significant positive effect on overall life quality. A new AI tool like Delphi-2M would definitely improve personal healthcare and disease progression and I am excited about what more is to come around this project. One final thing I would like to mention is that the tool might not be so attractive for hypochondriac people. It could definitely be a shock if the doctor tells you you might get a serious disease in 15 years time and it could definitely be a mental struggle for some people. Nevertheless, with thoughtful use and guidance from healthcare professionals, this kind of AI forecasting could become a powerful ally in battling diseases and promoting healthier lifestyles.
References
Gregory, A. (2025, 17 september). New AI tool can predict a person’s risk of more than 1,000 diseases, say experts. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/sep/17/new-ai-tool-can-predict-a-persons-risk-of-more-than-1000-diseases-say-experts
Geng, C. (2025, 14 maart). What to know about biohacking. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/biohacking
Interesting and well thought through, I like the personal opinion on the awareness you made. I also think it will make a huge difference in realization, being confronted with something you are maybe trying to ignore or don’t realize with harming your body with bad habbits. But this can also work the other way on some people, mentally unstable people. They will maybe end up in a downward spiral.
I really like your blog post!