Columbia Launches the Center for Innovation in Imaging Biomarkers and Integrated Diagnostics (CIMBID)

On June 16, 2025, the Center for Innovation in Imaging Biomarkers and Integrated Diagnostics (CIMBID) at Columbia University officially launched with a day-long series of presentations and events that showcased the new center’s broad expertise in leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and biomedical imaging data for personalized medicine.  

Led by Despina Kontos, PhD, CIMBID is a multidisciplinary center designed to advance research, education, and clinical translation in AI-driven imaging biomarkers and integrated diagnostics. Kontos shared her vision for the center, which brings together experts from multiple schools and departments at Columbia, with the goal of bridging the gap between technological innovation and clinical application, ensuring that advancements translate meaningfully into real-world patient care.

Opening remarks by James McKiernan, MD, interim dean of the Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons; Ajay Gupta, MD, MS, chair of the Department of Radiology; and Noémie Elhadad, PhD, chair of the Department of Bioinformatics, emphasized Columbia’s vast expertise in artificial intelligence, imaging, data science, and computer engineering, and the importance of bringing talent together to solve medicine’s most pressing problems.

Gupta also spoke about the potential of imaging data to transform medicine. Imaging generates nearly 90 percent of the data that is contained in a medical center, yet only 10 percent of that data is currently extracted for the care of patients. “That is a gold mine of data,” said Gupta, explaining that by leveraging artificial intelligence to uncover new patterns and predictions, the potential is there to bend the trajectory of many diseases that affect patients today.

A full-day schedule of presentations highlighted CIMBID’s vision and activities and aimed to engage the research community at Columbia, as well as partners in industry, more broadly into a vibrant scientific ecosystem. A panel discussion led by Anil Rustgi, MD, Herbert and Florence Irving Director of the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center, focused on the challenges around translating AI tools to the clinic. The day ended with a short presentation and demonstration of Flywheel, an advanced cloud-based imaging informatics platform offered through CIMBID, which is designed to enhance medical imaging research by providing scalable access to multi-modal imaging datasets.

In closing, Kontos shared her excitement for the future and thanked the leadership at Columbia University Irving Medical Center for its vision and support. “What CIMBID represents is a reminder of who we are and why we do what we do every day," she said. "It’s an opportunity for us to come together and support each other and move forward with a vision that can be inspiring to all of us on a daily basis.” 

More About the Speakers

• James McKiernan, MD, John K. Lattimer Professor of Urology; CEO, ColumbiaDoctors; Interim Dean, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons.
• Ajay Gupta, MD, MS, James Picker Professor of Radiology; Chair, Department of Radiology
• Noémie Elhadad, PhD – Associate Professor of Biomedical Informatics; Chair, Department of Biomedical Informatics; Director, AI at VP&S Initiative; Member, Data Science Institute; Member, Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Despina Kontos, PhD – Herbert and Florence Irving Professor of Radiological Sciences (in Radiology and the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center) and Professor of Biomedical Informatics and Biomedical Engineering; Vice-Chair of AI and Data Science Research, Department of Radiology; Director, CIMBID; Chief Research Information Officer (CRIO), Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC); Director of Biomarker Imaging, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital; Member, Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Junhao Wen, PhD, Assistant Professor of Radiological Sciences; Director of Imaging Genetics Research, CIMBID
• Sachin Jambawalikar, PhD, Assistant Professor of Radiology (Physics); Associate Chair of Research Informatics/IT, Department of Radiology; Director of Research Informatics, CIMBID
• Sam Payabvash, MD, Associate Professor of Radiology; Director of Clinical Translation and Innovation, CIMBID
• Jeff Goldsmith, PhD, Associate Professor of Biostatiscs; Associate Dean of Data Science, Mailman School of Public Health; Associate Director, CIMBID
• Elisa Konofagou, PhD, Robert and Margaret Hariri Professor of Biomedical Engineering & Professor of Radiology (Physics); Associate Director, CIMBID
• Garud Iyengar, PhD, Professor of Industrial Engineering and Operations Research; Avanessians Director, Data Science Institute
• Hashim Al-Hashimi, PhD, Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics; Associate Dean for Biomedical Graduate Education
• George Hripcsak, MD, MS, Vivian Beaumont Allen Professor of Biomedical Informatics
• Mert Sabuncu, PhD, Professor of Engineering; Vice Chair of AI & Engineering Research, Cornell Engineering
• Stella Kang, MD, MS, Professor of Radiology; Vice Chair of Clinical Research, Department of Radiology; Member, Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Bethany Percha, MPH, PhD, Chief Data and Analytics Officer, NewYork-Presbyterian
• Ruth Carlos, MD, MS, Professor of Radiology; Vice Chair of Academic Affairs and Community Engagement, Department of Radiology; Director of Research in Outcomes & Care Delivery, CIMBID; Member, Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Shane Kalil, New England Higher Education and Academic Medical Center Leader at Amazon Web Services
• Gregory Goldmacher, MD, PhD, Associate VP, Clincal Research and Head of Clinical Imaging & Pathology, Merck
• Anil Rustgi, MD – Herbert and Florence Irving Professor of Medicine; Herbert and Florence Irving Director, Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center; Associate Dean of Oncology, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons; Chief, Cancer Services, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Irving Medical Center
• Muredach Reilly, MD, Florence and Herbert Irving Endowed Professor of Medicine; Associate Dean for Clinical and Translational Research, Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons; Director, Irving Institute for Clinical and Translational Research
• Howie Pollard, Managing Director, North America East Flywheel.Io