Some moments change you.
During my graduate school studies in engineering, I taught microbiology in the evenings. When we got to viruses, I showed my students a PBS documentary on Ebola. What I saw shook me—teams in hazmat suits stepping into Zaire, racing against time to contain an outbreak.
That moment stuck with me.
When the engineering department announced a Microsoft-sponsored initiative for computational vaccine design, I didn't hesitate. I told my advisor:
"I'm in. And I'm doing it on Ebola."
To them, it seemed random.
To me, it was necessary.
I knew one thing: I wanted to use my training to solve real-world problems. So, I did my part.
🤖 I built machine learning models to aid in vaccine design.
✈️ I earned travel awards to present my research.
📝 I even got published as a student.
But more than that, it was my first real glimpse into what AI could do in healthcare.
Today, we hold AI in our hands. The question is: How will we use it?
AI isn’t just about consumer products—it can reshape healthcare, predict outbreaks, and design life-saving treatments. We have an incredible opportunity to move humanity forward, and as AI practitioners, we must ensure that AI is used not just for efficiency and corporate profits—but for good.
It is our duty.
That’s why I started this journey.
And that’s why it continues.
This post originally started as a LinkedIn discussion. Join the conversation here → https://www.linkedin.com/posts/sophiabanton_bioinformatics-blackhistorymonth-publichealth-activity-7293614516141981696-VSsC?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAABgnFAEBqPrsJQHrleFspXku59GJCly2ft8
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