The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Fighting the COVID-19 Pandemic

TLDR

The COVID‑19 pandemic accelerated AI adoption across many sectors, from epidemiological tracing to contactless payments, reshaping daily life while highlighting the continued need for clinical trials and human expertise. The study examines how careful AI deployment can aid in confronting the pandemic across healthcare, society, and research domains. The pandemic has accelerated digital transformation, with AI emerging as a globally valuable, open‑source ally that supports health‑emergency responses worldwide.

Abstract

The first few months of 2020 have profoundly changed the way we live our lives and carry out our daily activities. Although the widespread use of futuristic robotaxis and self-driving commercial vehicles has not yet become a reality, the COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically accelerated the adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in different fields. We have witnessed the equivalent of two years of digital transformation compressed into just a few months. Whether it is in tracing epidemiological peaks or in transacting contactless payments, the impact of these developments has been almost immediate, and a window has opened up on what is to come. Here we analyze and discuss how AI can support us in facing the ongoing pandemic. Despite the numerous and undeniable contributions of AI, clinical trials and human skills are still required. Even if different strategies have been developed in different states worldwide, the fight against the pandemic seems to have found everywhere a valuable ally in AI, a global and open-source tool capable of providing assistance in this health emergency. A careful AI application would enable us to operate within this complex scenario involving healthcare, society and research.