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Inside the Allen Institute for AI in Seattle. (GeekWire File Photo / Todd Bishop)
The Allen Institute for AI (Ai2) is joining a high-profile national effort to accelerate cancer research using artificial intelligence, committing $10 million in researcher time and technical expertise to the Cancer AI Alliance, a consortium led by the Fred Hutch Cancer Center.
Google Cloud is also committing $10 million in resources to the effort, planning to provide computing infrastructure and tools to help process large volumes of cancer data.
They say the goal is to create a novel AI infrastructure that supports the training and deployment of AI models across institutions while maintaining data security and privacy standards for patients.
The Cancer AI Alliance was announced in October 2024 as a joint effort among four major cancer centers: Fred Hutch, Dana-Farber, Memorial Sloan Kettering, and Johns Hopkins.
Backed by more than $40 million in initial support from AWS, Microsoft, NVIDIA, Deloitte, and Slalom, the project aims to use artificial intelligence to analyze large volumes of cancer data across institutions. Seattle-based Fred Hutch is serving as the lead coordinating center.
Ai2 CEO Ali Farhadi in his Seattle office. (GeekWire File Photo / Todd Bishop)
In a previous interview with GeekWire, Ai2 CEO Ali Farhadi said the Cancer AI Alliance represents the kind of real-world challenge that needs customized, domain-specific AI models. The Seattle-based AI institute focuses on open-source artificial intelligence technologies.
Farhadi said Ai2’s role in the Cancer AI Alliance reflects Ai2’s goal to apply cutting-edge research where it can have the most tangible impact on the world.
“Any step in the right direction in that space is going to be a risk worth taking, and that’s the kind of impact that we’re after,” Farhadi said, explaining Ai2’s ambitions for 2025 on the GeekWire Podcast. “If you’re actually trying to solve a real problem, there is no turnkey solution.”
The Cancer AI Alliance has said it expects initial research results by the end of 2025. A governing committee representing the founding cancer centers oversees the alliance. The long-term goal is to grow the initiative to $1 billion in resources.
