Month: January 2025

Takeaways

Open source AI is transforming healthcare outcomes by enabling important innovations in medical technology and healthcare research.Researchers have used models like Llama to improve the accuracy of radiological diagnostic tools, match patients with clinical trials and more.With more equitable health outcomes estimated to lead to nearly $3 trillion in GDP growth, open source AI drives economic growth as well as healthcare innovation.

Open source AI models like Llama are available for free for organizations to use, modify and build on, making this critical technology more accessible than commercial models.

As a result, open source is enabling important innovations in medical technology, healthcare research and related sectors, helping researchers make crucial advancements to solve intractable problems.

Developers, researchers and other professionals can download and fine-tune the models on their own devices. That they don’t need to send their data back to the AI model providers strengthens control and security over private health data – critical factors for highly regulated industries like healthcare. The stakes here are not only scientific but economic, with improved health outcomes across communities estimated to add $2.8 trillion to US GDP by 2040.

Here are a few stories from companies who are using Llama’s open source technology to create a healthier future.

Zauron Labs

Zauron Labs’s Guardian AI double-checks radiological imaging exams and reports to find errors, helping to improve healthcare outcomes. “People don’t realize that there are around 3 billion medical imaging exams done per year with a 3-5% error rate,” says radiologist Dr. Kal Clark. “That’s millions of patients.”

When such errors occur, proper treatments can be delayed, illness and suffering can linger, and patients may experience worse long-term health outcomes. Open source AI models have the potential to substantially reduce those errors.

“With Meta’s Llama, we’re able to collaborate with universities and build the Guardian AI tool to double check for errors. It’s like a spell checker for radiologists,” says Dr. Clark, Vice Chair of Informatics at University of Texas Health San Antonio and co-founder of Zauron Labs.

Llama has enabled Zauron Labs to open up development across health systems, so that developers can “layer on” multiple algorithms to check for numerous medical issues at once as part of regular quality and safety exercises, amplifying the tool’s usefulness for patients and practitioners.

Mendel

Mendel’s Hypercube is an AI platform that helps health and science organizations draw insights from patient data using a chat-like tool built on open source AI, including Llama.

Applications for Hypercube include trial matching and patient cohorting, which are important: around 80% of clinical trials fail to meet their enrollment targets today, slowing the discovery of new treatments. “Studies have shown that it takes hundreds of days to match patients with a clinical trial. Hypercube can do it in one day,” says Dr. Wael Salloum, Founder and Chief Science Officer at Mendel.

Open source AI gives companies access to what Dr. Salloum calls “breakthrough technology.” “Using Meta’s open source AI, Llama, Hypercube allows health care companies to organize their data on their own cloud, creating a secure and searchable knowledge base.” adds Dr. Salloum.

With Llama, Mendel’s Hypercube can be used to extract reliable information from patient records at scale.

We have witnessed a rapid increase in the adoption of sustainable and energy-efficient technologies. For example, global sales of electric vehicles have surged from 1 million to over 10 million in the last five years, indicating a growing demand from consumers for sustainable transportation options. At the same time, demand for energy is expected to double in the next few years as a result of AI and other advanced technologies.

As a leading global climate innovator, our businesses and brands play a direct role in influencing greenhouse gas emissions. Our next significant opportunity to further climate action lies in the electrification of buildings and the cold chain. Achieving this goal will require us to rethink our approach to energy supply and demand by developing optimized systems supported by AI-driven automation and connected to clean energy sources in the most efficient configuration.

Guided by our Gigaton Challenge, a pledge to reduce our customers’ emissions by one gigaton, or one billion metric tons, by 2030, we are helping our customers transition to more sustainable solutions. Buildings are responsible for more than 30% of global emissions, with transport responsible for another 20%. Trane Technologies is decarbonizing the sectors responsible for more than half of the world’s emissions. The great news is that the technology exists today to significantly decarbonize the built environment. Our big idea is simple: It’s about capturing waste heat and redirecting it where it’s needed. Combining heating and cooling—with sophisticated controls—in a thermal management system can be 3-4 times more efficient than traditional methods. It saves money and reduces emissions. That’s why we’ve launched the Trane® Thermal Battery™ Storage-Source Heat Pump System – a first-of-its-kind solution that uses thermal energy storage ice tanks, air-to-water heat pumps, electric chiller-heaters, and intelligent controls to advance electrified, low-carbon heating in buildings.

In the transport sector, our new Thermo King® all-electric Advancer trailer refrigeration unit can adapt to a variety of power sources, including axle power, and operates with zero direct emissions. We deliver end-to-end connected, active temperature-controlled transport and temporary storage solutions across the entire cold chain: whether by air, ocean or land.

As an industry leader and disruptor, we know that innovation is powered by the ingenuity of our people. So, we are investing in innovative ways to recruit, develop and retain talent that will help drive the future. In 2023 we launched our Technician Apprenticeship Program, accredited by the U.S. Department of Labor, and have embraced a skills-forward approach to hiring. Our Operation Possible initiative, through crowd-sourcing and crowd-solving, allows our employees to bring diverse skill sets to brainstorm, give feedback, and develop solutions to global challenges with real-world applications.

To challenge what’s possible, we also have to challenge our own assumptions. We know that reversing the detrimental effects of climate change requires transformative innovation. By helping consumers and business leaders see the opportunity for innovation in our buildings, our transport and our workforce, we can take real action on climate in ways that are sometimes overlooked.

This article was originally published by Joules Accelerator, the largest climate technology incubator in the southeast. It has been adapted for the Trane Technologies blog.

CLEVELAND, January 21, 2025 /3BL/ – KeyBank Community Development Lending and Investment (CDLI) provided a $15.5 million construction loan, a $3.18 million permanent loan and $17.7 million in low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) to finance the new construction of The Grand and The Glen, a scattered two site workforce affordable housing project in Toledo, OH.

The Grand and Glen will introduce 70 affordable family units to a vacant city-owned parcel and an underutilized parking lot. The project will target families with income levels between 50%, 60%, and 70% AMI levels.

The Glen is a 50-unit four story building at the Southland Shopping Plaza. The Grand will be 20 townhomes at the corner of Detroit and Grand avenues. Both locations boast proximity to downtown Toledo, The University of Toledo Medical Center, and numerous major employers and sought-after amenities. The project will offer a mix of one- and two-bedroom apartments and three- and four-bedroom townhomes. All units prioritize thoughtful design, energy efficiency, and accessibility. Moreover, the development will encompass modern amenities, enabling residents to comfortably age in place. This scattered-site development aims to diversify housing options, rejuvenate vacant or underutilized parcels, and inject approximately $28 million of investment into the City of Toledo

The sponsor, Pivotal Housing Partners, is a top ranked Ohio-based multifamily developer and property management company with LIHTC properties operating in 16 states including Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Kansa, Oklahoma, Texas, Tennessee, Georgia, Kentucky, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and most recently, New York.

Derek Reed and David Lacki of KeyBank CDLI structured the financing for the transaction.

About KeyBank Community Development Lending and Investment

KeyBank Community Development Lending and Investment (CDLI) finances projects that stabilize and revitalize communities across all 50 states. As one of the top affordable housing capital providers in the country, KeyBank’s platform brings together construction, acquisition, bridge-to-re-syndication, and preservation loans, as well as lines of credit, Agency and HUD permanent mortgage executions, and equity investments for low-income housing projects, especially Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) financing. KeyBank has earned 11 consecutive “Outstanding” ratings on the Community Reinvestment Act exam, from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, making it the first U.S. national bank among the 25 largest to do so since the Act’s passage in 1977.

About KeyCorp

KeyCorp’s roots trace back nearly 200 years to Albany, New York. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Key is one of the nation’s largest bank-based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $190 billion at September 30, 2024. Key provides deposit, lending, cash management, and investment services to individuals and businesses in 15 states under the name KeyBank National Association through a network of approximately 1,000 branches and approximately 1,200 ATMs. Key also provides a broad range of sophisticated corporate and investment banking products, such as merger and acquisition advice, public and private debt and equity, syndications and derivatives to middle market companies in selected industries throughout the United States under the KeyBanc Capital Markets trade name. For more information, visit https://www.key.com/. KeyBank Member FDIC. 

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CONTACT :
Laura Mimura
216-471-2883
Laura_J_Mimura@KeyBank.com

KEY MEDIA
NEWSROOM: Key.com/newsroom

We hope this issue of our newsletter brings a sigh of relief amid all the other news coming your way as 2025 begins. While many trends in climate change and sustainability action are worrying, the good news is that governments around the world continue to move regulations forward in ways that could have positive impacts across ESG topics and issues.

Recent news from Australia, Canada, and China point to a broad move towards requiring companies to report more corporate emissions and related sustainability disclosures. Most notably, in 2025 the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) will take effect not only for EU-listed companies but all companies headquartered anywhere with operations in the EU that meet 2 of 3 criteria (more than 250 employees, +€50 million in annual turnover, +€25 million in total assets).

Similarly, any company with total annual revenues greater than $1 billion that does any business in California will be subject to climate disclosure requirements once the State’s rule is finalized. Even without such requirements, ESG News highlights a study finding that around the world, 85% of executives planned to disclose GHG emissions because of what is viewed as the financial benefits of integrated reporting.

The U.S. offered more sources of hope with a Supreme Court decision that will allow communities to sue oil and gas companies for damages stemming from climate change.

The outgoing Biden Administration announced the U.S.’ nationally determined contribution towards achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement by setting a 2035 target of cutting GHG emissions by 61-66% from a 2005 baseline. And the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approved a state-level ban on selling gas cars, which will start in 2035 in California. In New York, the governor signed legislation requiring fossil fuel companies to fund projects to help communities adapt to climate change, following a similar law in Vermont.

In addition to these governmental moves in support of expanded corporate reporting and accountability, companies continue to voluntarily undertake sustainability reporting and action, which have become widely accepted best practices. G&A Institute’s latest research shows substantial increases in sustainability reporting for both large-cap and mid-cap U.S. public companies in 2023. A record 93% of Russell 1000 companies published a sustainability report that year, driven by increases in the smaller half of the index by market cap.

Corporate sustainability leadership examples abound heading into 2025, and we will continue to spotlight these in our newsletter. Costco has made the business case for diversity in the face of anti-DEI pressure. LEGO made progress on its sustainable packaging goals. Aldi announced plans to eliminate hydrofluorocarbons by 2035, replacing them with natural refrigerants and building improvements to prevent food spoilage. And over 500 companies and financial institutions have committed to begin nature-related corporate reporting by 20

As we monitor the positive steps taking place around the globe at the dawn of 2025, the G&A team is available to help your company navigate its sustainability journey. Please reach out to us at info@ga-institute.com if you would like to discuss how our expert team’s support can help you meet the challenges and opportunities in 2025 and beyond.

This is just the introduction of G&A’s Sustainability Highlights newsletter this week. Click here to view the full issue.