Two data scientists say they’ve created AI algorithms that can do in a week what biological researchers might otherwise spend years trying to pull off in a laboratory: discover antibody-based treatments that have a fighting chance to beat back COVID-19.

"It is our hope that in [the] future doctors might be able to use a device like ours to precisely identify diseases as they develop at the cellular level, in real-time, and in high resolution," researchers wrote.

Researchers at the University of Waterloo in Ontario have introduced a convolutional neural network for diagnosing COVID-19 on chest X-rays.

The can-do spirit of techies is shining around the world in some modest but mighty efforts to pitch in against the global coronavirus pandemic.

Some look like people in robot costumes. Some look like microwave ovens on wheels. All helped healthcare workers in Wuhan, China, avoid contracting COVID-19 while caring for hospitalized patients who had the illness.

Stanford University School of Medicine clinicians detailed their suggestions to spur the development of artificial intelligence Tuesday in Radiology.

Numerous healthcare technology companies are jostling to get products leveraging AI in front of healthcare providers on the front lines of the battle against COVID-19.

Amazon Web Services is corralling the expertise of more than 30 research institutions, businesses and startups to help combat COVID-19. The cloud giant has allotted $20 million for the work.