Sheba Medical Center has formalized a strategic partnership with OpenAI, making the Israeli institution the first hospital outside the United States to gain direct access to the technology firm’s dedicated suite of healthcare AI models. The agreement, established through the hospital’s ARC innovation arm, grants physicians early access to specialized clinical tools designed to assist in medical research and patient care.
Integrating Advanced AI into Medical Practice
The strategic partnership was officially signed with Nate Gross, OpenAI’s Head of Health. As part of this collaboration, a delegation from Sheba Medical Center is scheduled to visit OpenAI’s headquarters in August to conduct a series of meetings with senior executives.
Through this agreement, medical professionals at the hospital will utilize OpenAI’s latest healthcare AI models, including ChatGPT Health, which originally launched in January and was previously limited to a select number of American medical facilities. These systems are specifically built for clinicians, designed with encryption that meets strict healthcare security standards to assist in clinical decision-making based on the latest medical research.
Collaborative Product Development
Under the terms of the collaboration, dedicated teams at the medical center will actively participate in product development and attend dedicated OpenAI healthcare events. Clinicians will gain insight into new technology during the development phase and build internal applications optimized for the platform. Furthermore, the hospital will integrate its specific clinical protocols, treatment pathways, and institutional guidelines into the system, ensuring that the artificial intelligence outputs align with approved standards.
During daily operations, clinicians and researchers will submit patient case descriptions to the system. The platform will then generate responses containing relevant medical literature, supporting studies, journal references, and publication dates. This referenced data is designed to directly assist clinical decision-making, allowing physicians to independently verify the underlying evidence for any provided recommendation.
Accelerating Digital Innovation Through ARC
Beyond clinical uses, the integration is expected to support administrative and operational workflows, reducing documentation burdens and improving hospital efficiency. This initiative expands upon the growing portfolio of artificial intelligence technologies managed by the hospital’s ARC innovation center. Prior successful integrations through ARC innovation include solutions like Aidoc, which analyzes medical imaging to accelerate critical diagnoses, and SmartER, a platform that automatically documents and summarizes emergency department patient encounters.
The ARC innovation center was established in 2019 by Sheba Director General Prof. Yitshak Kreiss and Chief Transformation and Innovation Officer Dr. Eyal Zimlichman to accelerate digital healthcare advancement. The center facilitates the testing of new technologies within the hospital setting, cultivates strategic relationships globally, and operates a joint investment platform alongside TriVentures.
“The healthcare system is one of the fields where artificial intelligence can have the greatest impact,” OpenAI said in a statement. “We are excited to collaborate with Sheba to make advanced AI capabilities available to doctors, researchers, and healthcare professionals.”
