Université de Montréal visits LMU: Health Innovation, Technology and Research

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into medicine represents a paradigm shift, promising to revolutionize diagnostics, treatment, and medical education. Recognizing the global nature of this transformation, the establishment of international partnerships is paramount for accelerating innovation and ensuring its equitable and effective implementation.

A recent week-long visit by a Université de Montréal (UdeM) delegation to LMU fostered Bavarian-Québec partnerships in AI medicine through research exchanges and joint venture planning. This visit on "AI and Medicine," brought together leading academics, researchers, clinicians, and policymakers from Québec and Bavaria. The series of events, running from Tuesday to Saturday, facilitated a rich exchange of knowledge, showcased cutting-edge research, and laid the groundwork for future joint ventures in research, education, and clinical implementation of AI technologies.

The week commenced on Tuesday with a focus on "AI in Medical Education". The Forschungscafé , hosted by the Bavarian Research Alliance (BayFOR), current initiatives of Bayern-Québec/Alberta/International were presented. This was followed by a visit to the Institute of Digital Medicine at the University Hospital Augsburg, where the delegation, led by Ludwig Christian Hinske, engaged in discussions on the practical integration of digital solutions in medical training and practice.

Wednesday shifted the focus to the infrastructural backbone of AI research: high-performance computing. The visit to the Leibniz Supercomputing Centre (LRZ), guided by Peter Zinterhof and Rainer Ösmann, provided insights into the massive computational power required to train and deploy complex AI models.

On Thursday, the program addressed the vital aspects of funding and governance. A BayFOR-led session introduced the UdeM delegation to EU grants and funding schemes, demystifying the financial pathways for transatlantic research projects. The "AIMInnovate" event at the Bavarian Ministry of Science and the Arts with Ministerial Counselor Dr. Huth and State Minister Dr. Blume, titled "Politics and Med Tech," highlighted how the Bavarian government supports AI and innovation through forward-thinking legislation and policy initiatives.

The week culminated in the Friday Symposium “AI and Data Science" which served as the academic centerpiece of the visit. The symposium featured a series of high-impact presentations:

• Diagnostics and Discovery: Andreas Mock opened the session by illustrating AI'stransformative potential in pathology.
• Clinical Translation: Jean Noel Nikiema and Tony Leroux showcased a student-ledinitiative aimed at reducing barriers to the clinical translation of AI research.
• AI in Practice: Presentations by Hans Stubbe on agentic AI for clinical decisionsupport, Christian Heiliger on AI-augmented cancer surgery, and Robert Garcea onthe implementation of ambient scribes in clinical settings highlighted the diverseapplications of AI in direct patient care.
• Data and Infrastructure: Matthias Heinig discussed the use of multiomic analyses incardiology, while Michael Ingrisch and Gabriel Lindner presented CORE, LMUKlinikum's high-performance computing initiative. The challenge of data security andutility was addressed by Katharina Danhauser and Balthasar Schachtner, whopresented on the development of on-premise large language models for hospital use.
• The Human-AI Interface: Stefan Feuerriegel's research on the effect of LLM-generated explanations on diagnostic decisions in radiology offered critical insightsinto the interaction between clinicians and AI.
• Education and Harmonization: The symposium concluded with a session oninterdisciplinary education as a driver of innovation and a presentation by Adrian Thummerer on using open-source LLMs toharmonize medical data, bringing the week'sthemes full circle.

„ Numerous events have made it clear to me that the potential of AI goes far beyond ChatGPT and how strongly the medical sector in particular will be affected by it in the coming years. One particularly memorable conclusion was: ‘It's about learning to work more effectively with AI - not about expecting AI to do the work.’ “
Lara Pavelko,
Medical Student LMU

The engagement extended into the weekend with the Munich Medical Student Science Conference 2025 on Saturday, further integrating the student community into this high-level scientific discourse. Trough the annual GAME (Global Alliance of Medical Excellence) Meeting in Nottingham Prof. Hyunmi Park from Korea University was able to give her keynote on Tradition, Transition, Transformation in Medicine.

The UdeM delegation's visit was a resounding success, marking a significant milestone in the academic partnership between UdeM and LMU. The shared commitment to advancing medical science through AI, coupled with the strong institutional and governmental support demonstrated throughout the week, forecasts well for the development of joint research projects, student and faculty exchange programs, and shared educational resources. As we move forward, the insights gained and relationships forged during this week will be instrumental in navigating the complex but promising future of artificial intelligence in medicine.