A baby thanks to AI? This couple couldn’t conceive — until doctors used robotic assistance
After years of being unable to get pregnant, one couple turned to artificial intelligence to help them achieve their dream of starting a family.
Love it or loathe it, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is already capable of extraordinary things, including bringing a newborn baby into the world.
How AI helped conceive a baby
Edna and Tony (not their real names) are a 40-something couple whose hopes of starting a family appeared to be dashed by her ovarian insufficiency. However, in November last year, following by the intervention of AI, Edna gave birth to son Luis (which is his real name), who became the world’s first newborn to be conceived with the help of the technology.
In 2023, Edna and Tony, having tried to conceive for a number of years, became the subjects of a prototype study at Hope IVF private clinic in Mexico City, run by Conceivable Life Sciences, a company which boasts the world’s “first AI-powered automated IVF lab”.
The lab uses Artificial Intelligence to perform an Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI), which combines egg and sperm to create an embryo using more than 200 steps. Because of the use of mathematical algorithms and robotics, the treatment can be performed with greater control and precision compared to current manual approaches, and can even be carried out remotely.
To date, 41 patients have undergone the treatment, resulting in 21 pregnancies and 18 live births. That’s a 51% birth rate, which aligns with industry standards, according to the Vienna Consensus.
The future of AI in reproductive medicine
As is the case is every sector, AI is still in the early stages of its development, which means there is an expectation things will improve significantly in the future.
Dr. Luis Miguel Campos, Edna and Tony’s clinician, told Newsweek, that improving consistency and efficiency would be key to reducing the cost of the treatment in the immediate future.
As AI advances, its role in fertility care is set to grow. For families like Edna and Tony’s, it’s already made the impossible possible, offering new hope and a glimpse into the future of reproductive medicine.
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