Working Plan of Shanghai Municipality for the Development of Medical Artificial Intelligence (2025-2027)

This Working Plan has been formulated with a view to implementing and consolidating the decisions and arrangements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on advancing the "Artificial Intelligence (AI) +" initiative, to promoting the in-depth integration of AI and medical innovation, to driving the high-quality development of the medical health cause, and to building Shanghai into a highland with global influence for medical AI technology innovation, application demonstration, and industrial development.

I. Enhancing the Capability of Original Innovation

1. Deepening the frontier fundamental research. We shall expand the research layout of AI with the focus laid on the frontier fields such as the cognitive intelligence and the reinforcement learning, and support the innovative exploration in the frontier domains of medicine such as the brain science and the brain-computer interface, and the computational biology. We shall encourage the national laboratories and science research institutions in Shanghai to strengthen the collaboration with the medical institutions, and strive to produce a batch of leading and overturning theoretical achievements. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Science and Technology, the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, and the Municipal Commission of Health)

2. Driving breakthroughs in algorithms and enhancements in computational capabilities. We shall accelerate the research and development of core algorithm technologies, innovate in accordance with the technological paradigm of "the integration of the general and the special", and promote the creation of large models such as large language models in medicine, general imaging, and intelligent interaction. Relying on the AI public computing power platform, we shall facilitate the interconnection among various computing resources and strengthen the construction of intelligent computing clusters. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, the Municipal Commission of Science and Technology, and the Municipal Data Bureau)

3. Enhancing data governance and optimizing data flow. We shall utilize technologies such as semantic knowledge graphs and pre-trained large language models to automatically extract and process complex medical data. We shall support and drive the development of distributed, multi-modal data management and federated learning technological paradigm via privacy computing, differential privacy, homomorphic encryption, and other technologies. We shall also employ techniques such as feature engineering, data virtualization, and synthetic data to enable the online arrangement of data analysis and modeling. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, the Municipal Data Bureau, the Municipal Commission of Science and Technology, and the Municipal Commission of Health)

II. Building Support Platforms

1. Constructing new healthcare data infrastructures. We shall formulate the standards and norms for the classification, grading, and integrated application of healthcare data to build up the Municipal Large Platform of Healthcare Data. We shall build municipal healthcare digital intelligent innovation laboratories, medical big data training facilities, public health data laboratories, and medical insurance big data laboratories for the multiple algorithm training, intelligent evaluation and analysis. Moreover, a batch of open corpora in the medical industry shall be constructed by relying on the municipal corpus platform. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Health, Shanghai Hospital Development Center, the Municipal Data Bureau, the Municipal Healthcare Security Administration, the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, and the Municipal Disease Control and Prevention Administration)

2. Constructing AI-driven drug R&D platforms. We shall build a platform for screening and optimizing micro-molecule innovative drugs to achieve the lead compound discovery based on the dynamic structure of targets, efficacy evaluation, and the new prescription of existing drugs. We shall also build a platform for macro-molecular biomedical large models with iterative design that integrates wet-lab and dry-lab, and develop integrated automation technology for large models and low-throughput wet-lab, aiming to realize the full-process automation of low-throughput wet-lab such as protein construction, expression, purification, and performance evaluation, and to accelerate the product research and development. (Responsible unit: the Municipal Commission of Science and Technology)

3. Building a medical AI testing and verifying center. We shall construct the authoritative testing datasets and the evaluation standard systems for medical AI. We shall build an evaluation platform for AI medical devices by making use of the Municipal Medical Device Testing Institute, etc. to conduct the type/registration inspection, software quality evaluation, and algorithm performance assessments of medical AI products. Moreover, we shall urge and refine the rules and regulations on the safety and ethical governance of medical AI. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Health, the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, the Municipal Commission of Science and Technology, and the Municipal Medical Products Administration)

4. Constructing a pilot base for medical AI applications. We shall build a national-level pilot base to promote the implementation of the whole-process scenario planning, research and development as well as the application of medical AI. And we shall implement the "AI +" scenario demonstration project, and carry out the pilot application of medical AI products. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Health, the Municipal Development and Reform Commission, and the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization)

III. Creating Comprehensive Application Scenarios

1. In-depth Integration of AI with Clinical Medicine

(1) The auxiliary decision-making system in clinical care. We shall propel the deep integration of large models, construct knowledge bases for the auxiliary decision-making system in clinical care, and realize the full-coverage of the application of the auxiliary decision-making supporting system in clinical care for all levels of medical institutions in this Municipality. (Responsible unit: the Municipal Commission of Health)

(2) Auxiliary diagnosis in testing and examination. Based on the multi-modal large models, we shall carry out intelligent medical imaging auxiliary diagnosis, and achieve the intelligent pre- warning for critical numerical values, enhanced interpretation of diagnostic images, and precise quality control. And we shall urge the application of vertical large models in the auxiliary diagnosis in testing and examination. (Responsible unit: the Municipal Commission of Health)

(3) Auxiliary application of intelligent surgery. We shall, by making use of AI in the preoperative diagnosis, surgical planning, in-operation navigation, and real-time monitoring, promote the research and application of AI technologies such as laparoscopic surgical robots and expand the application scenarios of remote surgery. (Responsible unit: the Municipal Commission of Health)

(4) Intelligent medication service. We shall develop smart pharmacies with capabilities such as automated prescription dispensing, medication verification, and prescription pre-review. We shall also enhance the application of speech recognition and natural language processing in "Internet + Pharmacy", and provide remote, personalized medication guidance. (Responsible unit: the Municipal Commission of Health)

(5) Intelligent rehabilitation service. We shall popularize the utilization of medical external treatment equipment, exemplified by exoskeleton rehabilitation robots and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) acupuncture and massage robots, practice the real-time monitoring of patients' recovery progress, and achieve a full coverage of intelligent rehabilitation service in all specialized rehabilitation hospitals and rehabilitation divisions of medical institutions in this Municipality. (Responsible unit: the Municipal Commission of Health)

(6) Intelligent patient service. We shall provide patients with end-to-end services, including pre-diagnosis guidance, in-diagnosis cloud companionship, and intelligent post-diagnosis follow-ups. And we shall popularize bedside smart devices, and provide services such as the monitoring and early warning of patients' conditions, and intelligent bedside care. (Responsible unit: the Municipal Commission of Health)

2. In-depth Integration of AI with TCM

(1) Intelligent TCM diagnosis and treatment system. We shall establish intelligent TCM consultation platforms. We shall also conduct intelligent evaluation regarding TCM diagnosis and treatment, and build up the intelligent models for the therapeutic evaluation and connotative analysis of the diseases for which TCM proves effective with relative advantages. Moreover, we shall explore and conduct such work as the digital approach to carrying forward the academic thoughts of well-known veteran TCM doctors, and explore the formulation of series of digital standards for key TCM therapies and medicines. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Health, and the Municipal Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine)

(2) Intelligent TCM pharmacy services and management. We shall strengthen the summary on the clinical therapeutic effect of specialized TCM preparations, and the screening of effective constituents and mechanisms of action of TCM medicines. We shall also optimize and improve the delivery service system of TCM medicines, and achieve the whole process intelligent management of traceable TCM medicinal herbal decoctions and tablets in this Municipality. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Health, the Municipal Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and the Municipal Medical Products Administration)

3. In-depth Integration of AI with Public Health

(1) Intelligent management of public health events. We shall establish an intelligent model dealing with the perception and reporting of public health emergencies. Moreover, we shall build an integrated intelligent individual equipment system to achieve a digital and intelligent support for the entire process of public health event management. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Health, and the Municipal Disease Control and Prevention Administration)

(2) Intelligent monitoring of infectious diseases. We shall comprehensively deploy the prepositional intelligent monitoring software for infectious diseases; and establish a pathogen gene sequencing analysis system at the testing institutions in this Municipality to explore a deep study in gene sequencing. Through vertical large models, we shall build a "Disease Control Brain", and create an omnibearing cross-departmental risk prediction model. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Health, and the Municipal Disease Control and Prevention Administration)

(3) Whole-cycle smart vaccination. We shall optimize the intelligent vaccine and immunization service platform to realize the whole-cycle smart vaccination. We shall also establish vaccine knowledge bases, build up large language models, and provide the vaccine information inquiry and personalized recommendation. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Health, and the Municipal Disease Control and Prevention Administration)

(4) Intelligent health assessment and intervention. We shall develop an AI health management large model to conduct graded and categorized assessments and management of residents' health status. And we shall establish intelligent chronic disease management support centers at community health service centers in this Municipality. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Health, and the Municipal Disease Control and Prevention Administration)

(5) Intelligent health services for priority groups. For infants and children, we shall implement intelligent assessments of their growth and development level by relying on the municipal information system for maternity and child life-circle healthcare, and achieve the full coverage of intelligent infants and children healthcare management in community health service centers, maternity and child health institutions, midwifery medical institutions, and municipal pediatric hospitals in this Municipality. For pregnant and lying-in women, we shall explore the use of wearable devices to monitor critical health indicators for elderly, and/or high-risk pregnant women in real-time. (Responsible unit: the Municipal Commission of Health)

4. In-depth Integration of AI with Healthcare Management

(1) Smart hospital management. We shall develop a digital twin of the hospital and establish an integrated decision-making platform that combines the operational and financial data, and enables an omni-bearing posture perception and dashboard visualization of the hospital. And we shall raise the intelligent management level of key logistics functions, including operating rooms and inventory of medicines and consumables. (Responsible unit: the Municipal Commission of Health)

(2) Intelligent professional governance. We shall upgrade and reform such systems as the municipal medical service monitoring and evaluation, and the intelligent health supervision,  build up an intelligent medical regulatory framework, and explore the application of risk warning and intelligent assessment in more scenarios. (Responsible unit: the Municipal Commission of Health)

(3) Intelligent medical education and training. We shall establish an original and universal platform based on the generative AI for medical education and training, develop simulation courses to integrate the virtual and the real, and conduct the immersive and full-scenario medical teaching and training based on real cases. (Responsible unit: the Municipal Commission of Health)

5. In-depth Integration of AI with Healthcare Insurance Supervision

(1) Intelligent supervision on anti-fraud in medical insurance under multiple scenarios. We shall use AI technology to create images and labels for abnormal hospitalization cases, and realize the automatic detection, intelligent assessment and quick warning of the potential fraudulent acts in medical insurance through conducting intelligent analysis by comparing individual cases with standard characteristics. (Responsible unit: the Municipal Healthcare Security Administration)

(2) Intelligent supervision on anti-fraud in medical insurance for key medical consumables. We shall push the construction of an intelligent examination and verification system for consumable medical materials. And we shall establish a specialized risk control model for key consumable materials, conduct a whole process monitoring and risk pre-warning over the consumables, and create a comprehensive monitoring system for key medical consumables, from macro-level oversight to micro-level scrutiny. (Responsible unit: the Municipal Healthcare Security Administration)

6. In-depth Integration of AI with Pharmaceutical and Medical Device R&D

(1) Facilitating the innovative drug R&D. We shall promote the application of AI technologies in complex fields such as undruggable targets, rare diseases, drug resistance in complex diseases, and the testing and verification of innovative drugs. And we shall support the research on key technologies, including the protein structure prediction and de novo design, drug target prediction, drug design and intelligent optimization, virtual screening, polymorph dosage, and organ-on-a-chip technologies. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Science and Technology, and the Municipal Medical Products Administration)

(2) Raising the intelligence level of medical devices. We shall drive the development of innovative medical devices, such as the medical imaging equipment, wearable devices, and medical robots, towards the orientation of intelligence, precision, and personification. And we shall support the enhancement of medical devices' capabilities by applying the frontier technologies such as multi-modal large models, extended reality and soft sensing, and drive the development of innovative products of high-performance AI medical devices. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Science and Technology, the Municipal Commission of Health, the Municipal Medical Products Administration, and the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization)

(3) Facilitating clinical trials for drugs and medical devices. We shall drive the application of AI technologies in the management of clinical trials. And we shall explore the application of digital twin technology, combine it with the AI model for drugs to establish models of the patient and disease, and conduct pilot virtual clinical studies for new oncology drugs. We shall also further explore the characteristics and underlying patterns of clinical disease-specific cohorts and natural population cohorts. (Responsible units: the Municipal Medical Products Administration, the Municipal Commission of Health, the Municipal Commission of Science and Technology, and Shanghai Hospital Development Center)

IV. Enhancing Capabilities of the Medical Industrial Development

1. Creating the highland of industry clusters. We shall make use of the advantages of Zhangjiang Innovation Hub of the Biopharmaceutical Industry and Artificial Intelligence Island to create a leading zone for AI innovation and application in medicine. And we shall support the innovative development of AI industry hubs such as the Grand NeoBay and Xuhui Riverside areas, and forge an integrated zone for the convergence development of AI and medical science. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, the Municipal Commission of Science and Technology, and the Municipal Development and Reform Commission)

2. Strengthening the cultivation of business entities. We shall support the innovative enterprises to grow larger and stronger by adopting a dual approach of introducing and nurturing, encourage the leading AI companies to expand into the medical sector. And we shall globe-widely attract excellent medical AI startup teams, incubators, and investment institutions, cultivate and incubate the startup medical AI enterprises with innovative vitality, and create a ladder structured enterprise ecosystem. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Science and Technology, the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, and the Municipal Development and Reform Commission)

V. Creating a First-class Development Environment

1. Optimizing the comprehensive regulation. We shall establish a comprehensive governance mechanism for medical AI; support the application of AI medical devices for the priority verification and approval to be included into the special examination procedure and the priority verification and approval procedure for innovative medical devices to ensure the priority; and strengthen the dynamic monitoring and evaluation of the application of medical AI products. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Health, the Municipal Medical Products Administration, the Municipal Commission of Science and Technology, and the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization)

2. Increasing the financial support. Improve the diversified investment mechanism. We shall encourage financial institutions to develop specialized credit products for AI empowered micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in the bio-pharmaceutical industry, and, by relying on the municipal financing credit service platform, support banks to increase the momentum of their credit loan. (Responsible units: the Municipal Commission of Health, Office of the Financial Commission of the CPC Municipal Committee, Shanghai Municipal Financial Regulatory Bureau, the Municipal Bureau of Finance, and the Municipal Commission of Science and Technology)

3. Strengthening the introduction and cultivation of talents. We shall intensify our efforts on the cultivation of young scientific and technological talents, stabilize the supporting momentum, and innovate a talent cultivation model that integrates the industry and the education. We shall encourage the interdisciplinary inter-change and integration of the talents in AI and fundamental biomedical disciplines, and promote the collaboration between universities and enterprises through the industry-education integration model to cultivate talents. Moreover, we shall make great efforts to introduce a batch of top scientists and talent teams, and implement a multi-disciplinary talent introduction and incentive mechanism. (Responsible units: the Municipal Talent Bureau, the Municipal Commission of Education, the Municipal Commission of Science and Technology, the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, and the Municipal Development and Reform Commission)