In a world driven by technology, 16-year-old Adrit Rao uses his passion for coding to transform healthcare. As an intern at Stanford University and a budding app developer, he is breaking age barriers and revolutionizing how we approach healthcare challenges. This is his AI journey.

Can you tell us about your AI journey? When were you first introduced to AI?

Before my journey into AI, I started with app development. I was introduced to programming in school when I was eight years old and was fascinated by it. I used to play with Scratch, which is a block-based programming language. When I transitioned to text-based languages, I did not have the same level of interest because I could not see my code and inventions come to life. During the quarantine of the pandemic when I was 12, I had a lot of free time and decided to try out app development! I have always been so inspired by apps on the App Store and how they can reach so many people, and I wanted to see if I could also develop apps. I self-learned app development using online videos and tutorials. Although the process was initially slow, seeing my code come to life was fascinating! Around a few weeks into my app development journey, Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) was coming around the corner, and they were hosting their annual Swift Student Challenge, which invites students from around the world to build a Swift playground with a chance to win a scholarship to Apple's WWDC. Even though I was early in my journey, I decided to participate as I thought it could be a fun and excellent learning experience, and indeed it was! To my surprise, I was the youngest winner of the Swift Student Challenge in 2020 and had the chance to meet the CEO of Apple, Tim Cook and talk about my projects with him. That whole experience at WWDC inspired me and motivated me to continue my journey. Since then, I have focused on my passion for solving problems in my community and beyond through apps and currently have four apps on the App Store. I feel that app development can allow anyone, no matter how old they are, to make a significant impact because it will enable us to reach so many people. 

When I was 13, I found an article about an AI model that could detect cancer. I still remember how amazed I was when I read that article; it opened my eyes to the field of AI. At that point, I started to self-learn AI using videos and tutorials. My journey in app development showed me that I could learn many things using online resources. When I was 13, after I had explored and learned about AI on my own, I started interning at Stanford. I am passionate about the applications of AI and apps to healthcare. I feel that apps can increase the accessibility of AI to doctors around the world and make healthcare more accessible to everyone. After starting my internship, I have had the chance to collaborate with many amazing people and researchers and learned so much. 

Can you tell us about the AI applications you built?

The two main AI applications I have developed at Stanford are AutoABI and A4. AutoABI is an AI-powered app that can detect peripheral artery disease using the sound of a patient's arteries. When I started my internship, I was introduced to this problem by the professor I have been interning with, Dr Aalami. It was a great learning experience to iterate through various solutions and finally end up on an accurate one. AutoABI has been tested in the clinical setting, and we are working on filing a patent. The other project I have been working on more recently is called A4. A4 is a deep learning system I developed that can automatically segment and measure abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) in CT scans. AAAs have a high rate of mortality and are hard to detect because they are often asymptomatic. The goal of A4 is to help triage patients and ensure that we detect AAAs earlier during routine CT exams. I am excited about the future of AutoABI and A4!

I have also been researching medical image analysis, focusing on making AI algorithms more explainable and interpretable in the clinical setting. Through my research, I have had the chance to present and publish my work at various AI and medical conferences/journals.

AI is a technology that influences every sector, but you still choose to transform healthcare. Why?

What inspired me to target AI in healthcare was the article I read when I was 13. As I continued to explore this interest through my internship at Stanford, I realized that it was something I enjoyed and was passionate about. What has made me excited is to see the AI apps I have developed be used. For example, when AutoABI was put into clinical trials, it was exciting to see my app tested. Now, with the latest project, A4, we have collaborated with Bunkerhill Inc. to test it out on data from various sites and aim for FDA clearance, which I am super excited about!!

What message do you want to share with students who want to study AI?

No matter their age, I believe anyone can make a difference. Many resources online have helped me learn AI, so I recommend watching YouTube videos, searching topics, and reading blogs. I am also passionate about app development and feel that it is a great skill for kids to learn because it is engaging and allows anyone to spread their innovations to the masses. I have had the pleasure of teaching kids around the US about the fundamentals of iOS app development in Swift through my non-profit Arètech Inc. "L2 Code 4 Kids" initiative for the past three years.

What are your plans in the pipeline?

I want to continue doing research at the intersection of AI, apps, and healthcare. I look forward to the next steps in getting a patent for AutoABI. I hope that someday, it can reach a lot of people around the world. I am also excited about A4 and all the progress that we have made. One of my goals is to get FDA clearance for A4, and I hope that A4 can reach many clinics and institutions worldwide.