Imagining artificial intelligence to help resolve CoronaVirus is easy. Possibly, the A.I. system could automatically create a medicine that can instantaneously cure patients. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Even so, artificial intelligence is helping us combat the coronavirus in very subtle, but meaningful ways.

First of all, artificial intelligence was pivotal in discovering the structure of the coronavirus itself. A library called AlphaFold that was released by DeepMind helped the creation of 3D models of protein. This helps us to better understand the structure of the virus and discover how the virus infects our cells. But more importantly, such discoveries allow us to guess which type of pre-existing medicine might work against the coronavirus. By understanding the shape of the virus receptors, it is possible to create a more effective solution against COVID-19.

Secondly, artificial intelligence-based recognition systems can more effectively monitor people to encourage lifestyles to prevent COVID-19. Currently, some I.T. companies are creating A.I. software that can determine whether people are wearing masks. If some people are not wearing masks, then they will be denied access to certain facilities as they might be exposed or spread the virus. By using artificial intelligence, it is possible to encourage people to take notice of their own health security as well.

Finally, artificial intelligence systems can predict where outbreaks might happen and how severe they might be. The CDC’s (CDC is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) FluSight initiative was a predecessor that focused on predicting influenza outbreaks. Now, similar systems are utilized for COVID-19 as well so that possible sources of outbreaks could be estimated. By changing the parameters of the A.I. systems to input coronavirus outbreak size and locations, it is possible for people to estimate the location and magnitude of the outbreaks.

Current artificial intelligence solutions are not advanced enough to simply create virus medicines on-spot. However, it is important to note that artificial intelligence is impacting the fight against COVID-19 in subtle ways that we don’t recognize.

신규승 강남포스트 학생기자  webmaster@ignnews.kr

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