There is a certain amount of mystery and power that surrounds the name “Sybil.” The name, which has its origins in the divine oracles of Ancient Greece, dates back to the feminine figures that were relied upon to relay knowledge from the unseen. This knowledge included the omnipotent past, present, and future. Now, the name has been excavated from antiquity and bestowed on an artificial intelligence (AI) tool that is being developed by a team of researchers from MIT’s Abdul Latif Jameel Clinic for Machine Learning in Health, Mass General Cancer Center (MGCC), and Chang Gung Memorial Hospital (CGMH).

The AI tool known as “Sybil” is a groundbreaking technology being used to assess the risk of lung cancer. The risk assessment tool, which uses AI-based natural language processing (NLP), is being applied to a massive databank of financial incentives and clinical guidelines in order to accurately assess the risk of developing lung cancer. Through the combination of medical records, Imaging studies, clinical reports, and pathology, the AI tool will be able to put together a comprehensive risk assessment for patients.

The AI tool is currently undergoing trials at all three institutes, and if successful, could prove to be a revolutionary way to provide personalized, data-driven assessments of a patient’s individual risk of developing lung cancer. With this new technology, researchers are hopeful that physicians will be equipped with actionable insights related to a patient’s individual risk, and in turn, help to improve detection and prevention of the disease.

The name Sybil is steeped in history and lore, and its resurrection by the MIT researchers should come to no surprise. As AI continues to expand, we are likely to see the AI tool named after the divine Oracle of Ancient Greece become a major player in the fight against lung cancer.