Prepare for AI Babies: AI is revolutionising the success rate of IVF

Thanks to artificial intelligence, the chances of achieving pregnancy through IVF have significantly improved.

This AI technology, which is already being used in Europe, Asia, and South America, has been pioneered by a Tel Aviv-based firm in Israel.

The software is capable of identifying the most viable embryos by analysing various features that are not easily discernible to the human eye. These features include genetic abnormalities and implantation potential. As a result, clinics using this algorithm have observed a remarkable 30 percent increase in their IVF success rates.

In case you're not familiar, IVF, or in vitro fertilization, involves extracting an egg from a woman's ovaries and fertilizing it with male sperm in a laboratory. If the fertilized egg develops into an embryo, a doctor implants it into the woman's uterus, with the hope of achieving pregnancy.

Unfortunately, IVF is a costly process, averaging over $12,000 per session, and it's not guaranteed to be successful. The success rates across all age groups are around 24 percent, necessitating multiple attempts for many women.

Recently, AI has been playing a crucial role in increasing the chances of pregnancy. For instance, scientists in California developed an algorithm that assesses the health of sperm, selecting the best ones for fertilizing an egg based on their shape and movement.

Now, with the latest AI breakthrough, embryo selection, one of the most critical decisions during the IVF process, no longer solely relies on human judgment. The embryologist's burden of choosing the most promising embryo amidst a busy lab environment is now eased, as the AI technology takes over this critical task. With the potential for wider adoption in the US soon, the prospect of AI Babies becoming a reality is becoming more tangible.

Dr. Daniella Gilboa, an embryologist who serves as the co-founder and CEO of AIVF, the reproductive technology company working on the algorithm, embryo selection holds immense significance in the IVF process.

“Imagine if you’re an embryologist, looking at multiple embryos in a hectic lab environment, and you have to decide which one has the best potential to become a baby. You might have eight, 10 or 12 embryos that all look the same — and you have to make that crucial decision, sometimes by yourself. It’s basically you and the embryos under the microscope,” Dr. Gilboa told Fox News, “Clinicians pick an embryo using its appearance to determine its quality, but Dr Gilboa added 'that's based on subjective human analysis that doesn't really quantify the actual chances of getting pregnant.”

EMA, AVIF's AI-powered software for evaluating embryos, goes beyond the capabilities of the human eye by processing vast amounts of data to assist in the selection process.

Dr. Gilboa explained that the AI has undergone training to identify specific embryonic features that are associated with various outcomes, such as genetic abnormalities, implantation potential, or even the gender of the embryo. These features are not easily visible to the human eye.

Using this information, the algorithm assigns a numeric score to each embryo, and ultimately, it is the doctor who makes the final decision based on the AI's analysis.

One of the significant advantages of the AI system is its remarkable speed, surpassing human capabilities, enabling it to evaluate embryos in a fraction of the time. Consequently, doctors can attend to more patients efficiently, catering to the demand for IVF services.

Dr. Gilboa also revealed that the existing clinics are only meeting about 20 percent of the demand for IVF in the US, highlighting the potential for AI-powered systems like EMA to bridge this gap and offer increased access to IVF treatments.

The AI software was trained by analysing numerous hours of time-lapse videos showing the development of embryos. Through this process, it learned to distinguish between embryos that led to successful pregnancies and those that were not viable.

However, some ethicists are expressing concerns about the potential consequences of using AI to select embryos based on their gender. They fear that this could open the door to the controversial concept of "designer babies" and raise ethical questions related to eugenics and legal complexities that our society might not be adequately prepared to address.

Dr. Gilboa emphasised that the algorithm is not intended to replace doctors; rather, it serves as a tool to aid them in the decision-making process. Ultimately, human professionals will have the final say in selecting embryos.

Furthermore, the software's implementation could potentially result in cost reductions for patients, as it may lead to quicker pregnancy success rates. Traditional IVF often requires women to undergo three to five treatments on average before achieving pregnancy. However, with AVIF's AI-powered assistance, the average number of treatments decreases significantly to 1.6, according to Dr. Gilboa's observations.