Riphah International University is working to create the first hospital in Pakistan dedicated to artificial intelligence. The university is pursuing a strategic partnership with Tairex, a Chinese healthcare technology firm incubated by Tsinghua University’s Institute for AI Industry Research (AIR).
Li Zheng, chief marketing officer of Tairex, confirmed the company is developing this cooperation to introduce its Agent Hospital system to Pakistan. This collaboration will focus on research, clinical diagnosis, and medical education.
Medical students and doctors will use virtual consultation rooms to undergo training as part of the agreement. The project also incorporates patient follow-up studies and clinical decision-making assisted by AI.
Riphah Chancellor Hassan Muhammad Khan said, "Together, we shall explore how AI can serve primary care, medical education and research, and build a new model of healthcare." The Agent Hospital platform employs AI doctor agents to support physicians and uses virtual patients to train medical professionals.
Human doctors will remain responsible for all medical decisions within the Agent Hospital system. Pakistan's National AI Policy 2025 designated healthcare as a priority area for artificial intelligence adoption.
The policy targets telemedicine and the digitisation of medical records as specific applications for AI technology. In August, Riphah held a three-day training programme in Islamabad.
Participants in the session learned about AI applications in teaching, research, and clinical practice.
