(Yicai) Jan. 23 -- A well-known Chinese tech entrepreneur has said that the public refusal of Zhang Wenhong, director of Huashan Hospital's infectious diseases department, to incorporate artificial intelligence into the hospital's electronic medical record system over concerns that it will negatively influence young doctors is unfounded.

The key to addressing worries about the degradation of young doctors' skills lies in shifting the approach to using AI, Wang Xiaochuan, chief executive of Baichuan Intelligence, told the media in response to Zhang's concerns about young doctors becoming overly reliant and misled by AI. The focus of AI applications should be on reminding and validating clinical thinking and treatment outcomes, he stressed.

Zhang led the Shanghai medical treatment expert team during the Covid-19 pandemic, becoming a household name in China due to his dedication to educating the public about epidemic prevention and control. Wang founded Baichuan, which focuses on the research and development of AI models, with the ambition to create the Chinese version of OpenAI.

The model of "AI safeguarding doctors" reduces the risks of missing and misdiagnosing patients and allows doctors to receive feedback and grow through the validation process, Wang said. "The growth of doctors cannot come at the expense of current patients," he noted, adding that doctors can identify the strengths and weaknesses of AI to find its best uses.

With the rapid advancement of model technology, AI has shown a thinking logic similar to that of doctors, Wang pointed out. Optimized AI models have achieved, and may even surpass, the level of doctors in diagnostic thoroughness and hallucination control, he added.

Wang said he would reach out to Zhang and is open to further talks if needed.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev