The tech community in Grand Rapids is buzzing with excitement as Tech Week, a six-day event dedicated to the latest trends and advancements in technology, officially kicked off today. The week-long event promises to delve into innovations across multiple sectors including healthcare, manufacturing, and education with over 70 independently hosted events expected to draw a crowd of around 15,000 attendees.

As reported by FOX 17, the event's lineup includes expert-led sessions on a multitude of technology applications such as augmented reality, virtual reality, and human-centered design. In particular, artificial intelligence (AI) takes center stage with more than 20 events focusing on its role in diverse areas ranging from cybersecurity to health care. Jason Joseph, the chief digital and information officer at Corewell Health, underscored the transformative powers of AI in healthcare. "We’re going to be bringing in one of our partners to talk about some of the ways that we’re using AI to help make our clinicians and our physicians in particular more efficient, and really enhance the level of care that we provide to our community," said Joseph, as per WOOD TV.

Joseph highlights one game-changing application, ambient listening technology, which automates the documentation process and saves physicians a significant amount of time daily. This innovation not only increases efficiency but also allows for better patient-centered care. The staffing shortages in the healthcare industry are also expected to see some relief with AI's burden-reducing capabilities. According to WOOD TV, Joseph emphasized that while "the sky is the limit" for AI's applications in clinical settings, safety and human oversight must always be carefully integrated to prevent potential errors or biases.