Interview with Kerstin Ritter: Early detection and new methods in neurology using artificial intelligence

In this interview, Kerstin Ritter talks about her plans at Hertie AI, the challenges and opportunities of AI in medicine and her enthusiasm for machine learning in the neurosciences. 
The interview was held in German by the Gemeinnützige Hertie Stiftung. The German version and can be found here: https://www.ghst.de/prof-dr-kerstin-ritter-hertie-ai 

What does your research focus on?
The research of my working group focuses on the development of AI methods for analyzing text, time series and image data in neurology and psychiatry, such as neuroimaging or smartphone data. In collaboration with clinical researchers, we use these models to detect brain diseases at an early stage, predict the course of the disease and response of therapies for mental illnesses.

What project would you like to set up at Hertie AI?
At Hertie AI, I am planning to set up a research department that will focus on the development of innovative machine learning methods for the early detection and prediction of neurological and psychiatric diseases. One focus here is the analysis of multimodal data, for example to better predict the progression of multiple sclerosis and predicting the response to therapy in depression. The aim is to transfer these methods into practice in close cooperation with clinicians.

Why did you move from Charité to the University Hospital of Tübingen?
I decided to move from Charité to Tübingen University Hospital because Tübingen offers a unique research environment in which leading experts from AI and the neurosciences work closely together. The opportunity to set up my own research department in the field of machine learning for clinical neuroscience at Hertie AI particularly appealed to me, as I can optimally develop my research here and bring it directly into clinical application.

You are making an AI podcast - what is the aim of this communication measure?
The podcast Dr. med. AI from the AI Campus aims to make the application of AI in medicine understandable and accessible. Experts from various disciplines explain how AI contributes to diagnosis, therapy and research and discuss current developments and challenges. The aim is to inform medical professionals, scientists and interested parties about the benefits and limitations of AI in medicine.

What fascinates you about AI?
What fascinates me most about AI is its ability to recognize complex patterns in high-dimensional data and make them usable for solving difficult clinical problems. I am particularly interested in the conditions under which AI models work reliably and robustly and how we can make them trustworthy for clinical decisions.