Emory Digital held an AI Showcase this spring for more than 100 Emory faculty, students, staff and researchers at the Rollins School of Public Health. The event centered on "From Idea to Reality" and featured a fireside chat with AI leaders, presentations on a few current Emory AI projects and a brainstorming session.
Organized by Emory Digital's AI Team, the event also included opportunities for attendees to network and socialize while visiting a variety of kiosks from various AI innovators around Emory.
The AI Team wanted the Emory community, including students, to see the work that is currently ongoing.
"We wanted to have speakers and projects that encompassed all of Emory AI," says Neha Murthy, a data and AI analyst who organized the event. "Even the venue felt perfect because Rollins is health care-focused while still being a school on the university side."
The highlight of the event was the chat with some of Emory's AI leaders, which included:
- Nancye Feistritzer, vice president of Emory Healthcare's Center for Care Delivery and Innovation
- Azra Ismail, assistant professor of biomedical informatics and global health
- Anant Madabhushi, director of the Emory Empathic AI for Health Institute
- Nabile Safdar, interim chief AI officer and associate chief health informatics officer for Emory Digital
- Lisa Wilson, assistant vice president of strategic optimization and training in Emory Research Administration
Brian McCarthy, operating partner for AI and digital platforms at Chicago Pacific Founders, moderated the discussion.
One of the projects that drew a lot of interest was Em-Chat, presented by Monique Bouvier, assistant professor with Emory's Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing and corporate director of nursing science with Emory Healthcare. Em-Chat is an AI tool that enables nurses to find critical policy, procedure and education information more easily.
Bouvier enjoyed the opportunity to present, pointing out that participants exchanged best practices and explored diverse AI use cases, all aimed at improving workflows and experiences. "This event showed the potential for a longer, more in-depth future gathering," she says.
"The AI Showcase was a powerful demonstration of interdisciplinary innovation, bringing together administrators, research scientists, nurses, physicians, Emory Digital and students," says Safdar. "These teams shared compelling stories of AI implementation, sparking stimulating discussions. The energy in the room was incredible, and the sense of community was inspiring.
"I am incredibly grateful and excited to be working with such a talented AI team who made this event possible," he adds.
Additional showcases highlighting Emory's AI work will be held in the future.
The Emory Digital AI Team includes (Front row, L-R) Melissa Sousa, Selvi Ramalingam, Neha Murthy, Chloe Devre, Matt Cohen, (Back row, L-R) Nabile Safdar, Kyle Jackson and Erin Morrison.
