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06/23/26

Large reasoning models as thinking machines for medicine.

Zhou, Hong-Yu; Rodman, Adam; Liu, Peng; Rajpurkar, Pranav; Hu, Tony Y; Wong, Tien Yin; Topol, Eric J. Nat Biomed Eng.

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Summary

AI has shown promise in pattern recognition but struggles with causal reasoning needed for complex diagnostic choices. This commentary discusses how new reasoning models are working to mirror human problem-solving and support medical reasoning by integrating patient records, decision tools, feedback, and outcomes for active decision making. The authors posit that as flexible thinking partners, AI tools may help manage complex experiences, clarify difficult cases, free clinicians for patient care, and enhance pharmaceutical innovation.

Read the paper
Zhou H-Y, Rodman A, Liu P, et al. Large reasoning models as thinking machines for medicine. Nat Biomed Eng. 2026;10(8):1526-1535.