Amplifying Intelligence
How Gators are defining medical education in the AI era
When the UF College of Medicine first opened its doors in Gainesville in 1956, a small group of researchers gathered over 1,000 miles away at Dartmouth in Hanover, New Hampshire, to discuss human intelligence. They proposed a lofty conjecture: that machines could simulate cognition using what they called “artificial intelligence.”
Azra Bihorac, MD, MS
Photo by Louis Brems
Seventy years later, that idea has reshaped the world, changing the landscape of research, clinical care and education for the next generation.
“The physicians, physician assistants and biomedical scientists we train today will practice in a world where AI is deeply embedded in health care systems,” said Azra Bihorac, MD, MS, the College of Medicine’s senior associate dean for research. “If they are going to lead responsibly in that environment, they must understand how these technologies work, what their limitations are and how to evaluate them.”
At UF, Gators are defining this approach to modern medical education. Unmatched computational resources and collaborative, multidisciplinary partnerships have created an infrastructure where students and trainees can tackle real-world health care problems and engage meaningfully with AI — no computer science background needed.
“One of the most rewarding aspects of this work is watching trainees realize they can help shape the future of medicine — and education is the most important investment we can make in the future of AI,” said Bihorac, also the R. Glenn Davis, MD, Dialysis Clinic Inc. Professor of Nephrology and the director of UF’s new AI for Health Institute. “Technology will continue to evolve rapidly, but the real drivers of progress will be people, such as our clinicians, scientists, engineers, students and trainees, who understand both the promise and the responsibility that come with these tools.”
Taylor Edwards
Photo by Hannah Clark
When fourth-year medical student Taylor Edwards began her studies in 2023, she wanted to challenge herself and embrace the field’s latest groundbreaking technology.
“I knew how many AI resources the university had at hand, and I identified a big knowledge gap there for myself,” she said. “So, I wanted to get involved.”
Edwards joined more than five dozen UF College of Medicine students who have participated in the Artificial Intelligence in Medicine track of the Research and Discovery Pathways Program over the last five years. The pathway enables UF medical students to conduct AI-related research projects, build connections with research faculty, hear guest presentations and gain access to premier tools and trainings. Students in the program have carried out AI-aided research in specialties ranging from obstetrics and gynecology to neurosurgery and neurology.
Joshua Wong, MD
Photo by Hannah Clark
At the Norman Fixel Institute for Neurological Diseases at UF Health, Edwards collaborated with Joshua Wong, MD, an assistant professor in the Department of Neurology, to develop predictive algorithms that determine pre-operative likelihood of brain shift during deep brain stimulation surgery, or DBS. Their work helps organize patients into risk categories that predict how much air may pass through the brain’s protective outer layer after it is punctured in surgery, an important measurement to ensure consistency of surgical decision making and improve patient outcomes for DBS therapy.
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Late 1980sUF faculty develop the Human Patient Simulator, a programmable, computerized manikin now used at several hundred institutions to help students practice invasive procedures.
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1996-2003
A UF College of Medicine standardized patient program serves as a pilot site for case development by the National Board of Medical Examination for the United States Medical Licensing Examination Step 2.
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2020
UF announces a $70 million AI partnership with NVIDIA and its co-founder, alumnus Chris Malachowsky. HiPerGator, the world’s fastest AI supercomputer in higher education, is housed in Gainesville.
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2023
The Malachowsky Hall for Data Science & Information Technology opens in the heart of campus, creating a seven-story space for UF’s AI across the curriculum integration with medicine, pharmacy and engineering.
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2025
UF College of Medicine and College of Public Health and Health Professions researchers create a powerful new computational and AI tool that can generate a high-resolution 3D map of the brain, a la Google Earth.
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2026
The UF College of Medicine launches an AI in biomedical and health sciences master’s program in Gainesville and Jacksonville.
Jeremy Balch, MD, PhD
Photo by Hannah Clark
Fourth-year general surgery resident Jeremy Balch, MD, PhD, sought out UF’s exceptional AI resources during his residency training at UF Health to join leading-edge discussions involving the safe and reliable integration of AI tools in medicine.
While all residents in the Department of Surgery are given time to pursue research, Balch was interested in diving deep into the potential applications of AI in surgery. He initially aimed to pursue a master’s degree from the UF Department of Health Outcomes and Biomedical Informatics but found his niche in the PhD program, taking an extra research year to develop AI tools that improve surgical safety and efficiency.
“I realized I had a unique opportunity to learn a whole new skill set,” Balch said. “The department had my back the whole time.”
His dissertation applied natural-language processing, computer vision and data modeling to automate tasks such as trauma coding and instrument tracking. The effort earned him an inaugural AI Research Award from the UF Artificial Intelligence and Informatics Research Institute in 2025.
“I got to dabble in different predictive, language and imaging models,” Balch said, noting that while AI is still nascent, there are many possibilities for future applications. “AI is only scratching the surface of its utility. What do we want it to do? Take notes? Make things more efficient? You can already see glimmers of how it could radically improve billing and help physicians with some specific aspects of work, such as accurately extracting and summarizing information from electronic health records.”
UF College of Medicine students will have the opportunity to answer these questions and more in a new Artificial Intelligence in Biomedical and Health Sciences master’s program launching on the Gainesville and Jacksonville campuses this fall — one of only a few graduate programs of its kind in the nation.
With workforce preparation top of mind, the program will equip graduates with the knowledge and skills to make impactful contributions in the emerging intersection between AI and clinical care. Bihorac will serve as program director.
“Integrating artificial intelligence with biomedical and health sciences isn’t just aspirational — it’s essential,” she said. “This program will equip our students with the analytical and scientific skills needed to solve some of the most complex challenges in medicine, from predicting disease to personalizing treatments. It positions our graduates, and our institution, to lead in a rapidly evolving field.”
