AI can detect biological signs of Alzheimer's disease years before symptoms are noted by the patient or their loved ones using only a 3-minute digital assessment delivered in a physician's office. New research from Linus Health, an AI-driven brain health company pioneering early detection of cognitive impairment and personalized intervention, shows that this same short test can also signal cognitive impairment and flag patients who should undergo further testing with blood-based, PET, or CSF biomarkers to enable earliest disease detection when action has the greatest potential to change disease trajectory and prevent, minimize, or slow down disability.

The findings come from two newly published peer-reviewed studies: an extensive clinical analysis of nearly 1,000 participants and an independent preclinical study conducted at Massachusetts General Hospital and the Harvard Ageing Brain Study. Together, the results show that subtle patterns in behaviour captured digitally and analysed by AI can reveal early disease processes linked to amyloid and tau deposition in the brain, long before traditional tools detect change.

"This is the first demonstration of a true behavioural surrogate biomarker for Alzheimer's disease," said Linus Health CEO and Co-Founder David Bates, PhD. "AI is detecting the earliest disruptions in brain function, likely several years before clinical symptoms. These groundbreaking studies confirm that our AI-driven assessments offer reliable preclinical signals of emerging pathology that can help clinicians act at a time when action matters most."