In this episode of Mindful AI, we speak with Mary Adewunmi, a rising force in medical AI whose work is transforming cancer diagnostics and chronic disease treatment.
Mary is a PhD candidate at the Menzies School of Health Research, founder of CARES AI, and a recipient of multiple prestigious awards for her deep learning research. But behind her technical achievements is a deeply personal story: a tragic misdiagnosis in her own family sparked her journey into healthcare AI.
We explore the promise—and the pitfalls—of AI in medicine: from democratizing diagnosis to the urgent need for ethical oversight, bias mitigation, and human-centered design. Mary shares how empathy, co-design with communities, and data accountability must guide the future of AI in healthcare.
If you’re passionate about AI for good, this conversation will leave you inspired—and better informed.
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💬 What role should AI play in healthcare? Let us know in the comments!
🎙 Links from the episode:
🔗 CARES AI: https://caresai.org/
🔗 Menzies School of Health Research: https://www.menzies.edu.au/
📌 Chapters
00:00:00 Introducing Mary Adewunmi
00:00:45 A personal tragedy sparks a mission
00:03:00 From computer science to cancer care
00:07:00 Why cancer research became her focus
00:10:00 What CARES AI is doing differently
00:12:00 AI outperforming doctors: promise and pitfalls
00:15:00 Empathy and accuracy in AI models
00:17:00 Democratizing healthcare with AI
00:20:00 The role of AI in treatment and clinical support
00:24:00 Ethical concerns: bias, black boxes, data privacy
00:28:00 Policy gaps and real-world consequences
00:33:00 Human-in-the-loop and co-design with patients
00:38:00 Can AI be truly creative?
00:45:00 Final thoughts and what needs to change
00:46:30 Subscribe & stay tuned for Part 2
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