By Ewen Harrison
Publication Date: 2026-05-07 12:40:00
Artificial intelligence may now outperform doctors in diagnosing patients in the emergency room, according to a new study in Science.
The AI was presented with written notes from real records from the emergency room of a hospital in Boston, USA, and was asked to comment at various points during the patient’s treatment. At the earliest stage – triage, when a patient first arrives – the AI identified the correct diagnosis or a related diagnosis 67% of the time.
The two doctors used for comparison achieved 50% and 55% respectively. This is a significant gap, especially at a time when information is at its most scarce and uncertainty is at its greatest.
This study is important because the field is evolving so quickly. Previous research showed that large language models – the technology behind systems like ChatGPT – could pass medical licensing exams. Interesting, but not that insightful. Passing a test is not the same as being useful on a station.
This new study goes even further. It puts AI alongside…
