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    Op-Ed                                                                    JUNE 12, 2026     |  The Indian Eye 12

                                  Using AI to Fight

              Antimicrobial Resistance

              The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is partnering with India to explore how

                              AI-driven tools can detect and combat antimicrobial resistance faster.

            SPAN MAGAZINE
            U.S. Embassy New Delhi
               n  the  fight  against  antimicrobial
               resistance, the greatest danger is
            Ioften what cannot be seen right
            away. A patient arrives with an infec-
            tion,  and  a  doctor  begins  treatment
            based  on  the  most  likely  cause.  But
            the bacteria may already be resistant
            to the standard drugs being prescribed.
            Confirming  that  resistance  can  take
            days,  and  while  doctors  wait  for  lab
            results,  the  infection  may  continue
            to  spread  faster  than  the  system  de-
            signed to stop it.
                That  quiet  uncertainty  is  what
            makes  antimicrobial  resistance,  or
            AMR, so dangerous. It is not just an-
            other disease. It weakens the founda-
            tions of modern medicine itself, mak-
            ing ordinary infections harder to treat.   AI’s role in the AMR response does not stop at diagnosis. AI is also being used to monitor infection trends, process whole genome sequencing
            It  is  also  the  kind  of  challenge  that               data, and even accelerate the search for new antibiotics (Photo: SPAN)
            demands better tools, faster answers,
            and stronger partnerships.        of  global  public  health  threats.  For   That is part of what makes AMR   what it is susceptible to.”
                That  is  where  Dr.  Ashley  Sty-
            czynski  comes  in.  An  infectious  dis-  years, health experts often described   such  a  pressing  issue  for  both  India   That diagnostic gap is one reason
                                              HIV, malaria, and tuberculosis as the
            ease physician and medical officer at   “big three” because of the number of   and the United States. It is a health   the United States is investing so heavi-
                                                                                challenge,  but  also  a  systems  chal-
                                                                                                                  ly in AI-driven approaches. AI is help-
            the U.S. Centers for Disease Control   lives  they  claimed  each  year.  AMR   lenge—one that affects preparedness,  ing scientists and clinicians move from
            and Prevention (CDC), Dr. Styczyns-  now belongs in the same category. “In   economic resilience, and public confi-  delayed  confirmation  toward  earlier
            ki is in India through the Embassy Sci-  the past few years, as we’ve been able   dence in care.      prediction.  “In  the  diagnostic  space,
            ence Fellows Program to examine how   to  gather  more  robust  data,  we’ve                          AI, especially machine learning, is be-
            the United States can support region-  come to appreciate that antimicrobial   RACE TO DIAGNOSE FASTER   ing used to do things like look at indi-
            al efforts to assess and address AMR.   resistance is also on par, causing more   One of the hardest things about   vidual bacterial cells and understand
            Her work sits at the intersection of   than  a  million  deaths  per  year,”  ex-  AMR is that it does not announce it-  their behavior on exposure to antibi-
            global  health,  health  security,  and   plains Dr. Styczynski.    self clearly. A resistant infection can   otics very early, to predict resistance,”
            innovation,  especially  as  the  United   But AMR is not only a threat   look, at first, like any other infection.  Dr.  Styczynski  says.  “So  instead  of
            States  advances  artificial  intelligence   because  of  the  number  of  deaths  it   The difference often becomes visible   waiting days, you might be able to get
            (AI) as a tool to detect, monitor, and   causes  directly.  It  is  also  dangerous   only after laboratory testing, and that   a result in minutes or hours.”
            respond  to  drug-resistant  infections   because  it  erodes  the  medical  tools   process takes time.   She  also  points  to  another  prac-
            more effectively.                 that many other forms of care depend   When someone has a bacterial in-  tical use of AI: helping clinicians de-
                Dr. Styczynski’s role in India is to
            identify gaps and local priorities, and   on. “So much of what we do in mod-  fection, laboratories typically need to   cide whether antibiotics are needed at
                                              ern  medicine  is  dependent  on  being
                                                                                                                  all. “For example, AI can help identify
                                                                                grow the organism and test it against a
            where collaboration with the United   able to have antibiotics that effectively   range of antibiotics to confirm wheth-  common characteristics of bacteria to
            States can help make a difference. Na-  prevent and treat infections,” she says.  er  the  bacterium  is  resistant.  “This   create diagnostics that can answer the
            tional action plans are already in place,   “This includes things like routine sur-  typically takes several days, and in the   question up front: is this viral or bacte-
            but  the  need  for  faster  diagnostics,   geries,  administering  chemotherapy,  meantime, you have a patient who may   rial, and do I need to give an antibiotic
            stronger  surveillance,  and  scalable
            technology  solutions  remains  urgent.   and managing HIV. All of these things   not be receiving effective treatment,”  or not?”
                                                                                                                      For a country like India, where both
                                              depend on having effective antibiotics.  says Dr. Styczynski. “This remains an
                  A GLOBAL PRIORITY           If that goes away, then it really under-  ongoing gap in addressing AMR: hav-  scale and speed matter, such advances
                The scale of antimicrobial  resis-  mines a huge portion of what we con-  ing access to rapid diagnostics that can   could  make  a  meaningful  difference.
            tance has pushed it into the front rank   sider essential health care.”   tell you what you are dealing with and   Continued on next page... >>

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