The French National Research Agency (ANR) recently announced the 6 winners of the RHU (Hopital-University Research) program. Among them, the “TALENT” project led by Pr Pierre Jaïs (General Director, IHU Liryc) and Dr Josselin Duchateau (Cardiologist, CHU de Bordeaux / IHU Liryc), which aims to revolutionize the prediction of cardioembolic strokes, through the use of artificial intelligence.

Strokes (CVA) are a major catastrophe for 26 million patients worldwide every year, resulting in 6 million deaths and leaving survivors with sometimes severe consequences. The annual cost is also major: 1,000 billion every year.

CVAs originating in the heart (a clot forms and breaks loose, ending up in the brain) are the most serious and also the most frequent (20% to 30%). If taking anticoagulants is an effective preventive therapy, identifying those at risk who should benefit from this treatment is extremely difficult.

The consortium of academic centers and private companies involved in the TALENT* project aims to revolutionize stroke risk prediction by developing digital tools capable of detecting this increased risk. This study will focus on the analysis of widely available data, notably from chest scans and/or electrocardiograms, and simpler clinical data such as age or the presence of diabetes.

With so much at stake, TALENT’s ambition is to develop tools that will save millions of lives and serious sequels.

*With a total budget of €26.5M over 5 years, including €8.6M financed by ANR as part of France 2030, the TALENT project brings together IHU Liryc, University Hospital of Bordeaux, Inria, University of Bordeaux, University Hospital of Dijon Bourgogne as clinical partner, and industrial partners: inHEART, Cardiologs and Incepto.