New York, NY — Mount Sinai Ushers in a New Era of AI-Powered Cardiology

New York. In what insiders describe as a pivotal moment for the intersection of AI and cardiovascular medicine, earlier this month, Mount Sinai formally launched The Samuel Fineman Cardiac Catheterization Artificial Intelligence Research Lab. The event, marked by a high-caliber symposium, underscores Mount Sinai’s ambition to transform interventional cardiology via advanced data science and machine learning.

A Historic Gathering of Minds

The lab, housed at The Mount Sinai Hospital, is named in honor of philanthropist Samuel Fineman — who passed in 2021 — in recognition of his support and his appreciation for the cardiac care he received under Dr. Samin K. Sharma.

Dr. Samin K. Sharma, in whose honor the lab’s namesake gift was made, is a distinguished interventional cardiologist and long-standing leader at Mount Sinai. He currently serves as Director of Mount Sinai’s Cardiovascular Clinical Institute and previously directed the hospital’s Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory.

"Our team at the Mount Sinai Cardiac Catheterization Lab has shown exceptional foresight in becoming early adopters of artificial intelligence," notes Dr. Sharma. "As a recognized global leader in patient safety and quality, we know we can't stand still. I fully anticipate that our continued integration of the latest AI breakthroughs will be the key to driving our care standards and patient outcomes to unprecedented heights."

Leading Minds Behind the Initiative

Dr. Annapoorna Kini, appointed as Director of the new AI research lab, brings deep domain expertise and a track record of innovation in interventional cardiology. Currently Director of Mount Sinai’s Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory, she leads a team renowned for safely managing complex coronary cases.

Dr. Kini emphasized that while AI is not a panacea, it holds real promise in enhancing specific workflows:

“While AI is not a magic solution to every problem, there are many places it can make a notable improvement over traditional techniques or bring some approaches that were never possible within reach. In five or so years, we think that many workflows can be augmented by AI to better focus our resources where they are most needed.”

Under her leadership, the lab intends to tackle a spectrum of challenges — from procedural planning to risk stratification, outcome optimization, and educational tools — through internal and external collaboration.

The keynote address was delivered by Prof. Richard Sutton, PhD, the 2024 Turing Award recipient and a celebrated figure in reinforcement learning and superintelligence. Sutton emphasized how experience-powered intelligence can transcend data-driven models, highlighting the next frontier of AI research.

Featured Presentations

• Gopi Polavarapu, Chief Digital & AI Officer at JAGGAER and a Fast Company Top 50 AI Leader, explored how AI is revolutionizing healthcare and supply chain operations.

• Shibansh Dohare, AI Research Advisor and PhD candidate at the University of Alberta, argued for new deep learning architectures capable of supporting future superintelligence

Panel on AI’s Future and Real-World Impact

The highlight of the evening was the panel discussion moderated by Dr. Annapoorna Kini, featuring:

• Douglas Mason, Director of AI at ExperienceFlow.ai, Harvard PhD, with research collaborations spanning Berkeley, Toronto, and MIT.

• Eden Meyer, reinforcement learning researcher at the University of Alberta and Huawei.

• Mahesh Chand, Founder & CEO of C# Corner, a global developer community of over 3 million members, Forbes Business Council member, former Microsoft MVP, and prolific author on blockchain and AI.

• Giri ATG, CEO of ExperienceFlow.ai and inventor of several patents in multi-agent systems

The panel explored the convergence of AI research with practical applications, from healthcare innovation to multi-agent systems, blockchain, and global developer adoption.

Closing Remarks: The Future of AI in Cardiology

The event concluded with remarks from Dr. Deepak Bhatt and Dr. Roxana Mehran world-renowned cardiology leaders at the Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital. Dr. Mehran’s remarks as the incoming president of American College of Cardiology, highlighted the critical role AI will play in advancing cardiovascular care and improving patient outcomes.

The evening ended with a vibrant networking reception, allowing researchers, clinicians, and entrepreneurs to exchange ideas and forge collaborations that could shape the future of AI in healthcare.