Viewpoint: Silicon Valley's 'move fast and break things' mentality doesn't work for health tech

Healthcare is a complex industry, and the "move fast and break things" Silicon Valley mentality coming from health tech firms is clashing with the cautious approach of the healthcare industry, writes Bloomberg's Parmy Olson in The Washington Post  on May 12. 

According to staff and entrepreneurs from multiple health tech firms, medical researchers at these firms have complained of being pushed to the move-fast-and-break-things approach of highly paid software engineers, while the tech leaders are complaining of being unable to experiment freely in a world of patient safety and regulation. This has resulted in a culture clash that could threaten patient trust. 

The health tech industry has also boasted about the use of AI to transform healthcare, but much of that promise may be just noise, according to the report. 

Multiple clinical studies published in 2021 showed that nearly all AI tools used to predict a diagnosis of COVID-19 made no difference or were potentially harmful. Additionally, the use of AI can also risk patient safety. 

Health tech firms say they use anonymous patient data to train their algorithms, but some health-tech firms don't keep that information 100 percent confidential, according to the report. 

These problems and culture clashes are leading tech companies to pull back on its once enthusiastic efforts to disrupt healthcare. 

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