The AI-AGE project was presented at the round table “Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare – Challenges and Opportunities”, held on 24 April 2026 at the Montenegrin Academy of Sciences and Arts (CANU) in Podgorica. The event gathered experts from Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina to discuss the role of AI in healthcare, including clinical applications, digital transformation, ethics, medical imaging, NLP, and AI assistants.
AI-AGE presented at CAN Round Table
AI-AGE was presented by Prof. Dr Nataša Popović, Faculty of Medicine, University of Montenegro, in the session dedicated to AI in clinical practice. The presentation highlighted key findings of the project and demonstrated how AI can support early detection and screening of chronic diseases, including examples related to colorectal cancer detection and the use of biomarkers.
Opportunity to present goals and results of the project
The event was also an opportunity to promote EuroCC activities and the role of NCC Montenegro in strengthening national capacities in HPC, HPDA, and AI. Participation in this round table further positioned AI-AGE within the broader regional discussion on responsible and clinically relevant use of artificial intelligence in medicine.
Key findings and potential benefits of the use of AI models developed in AI-AGE
Our team presented a paper titled “Interpretable ML for Diabetes and Prediabetes Screening Using Self-Reported Health Indicators” by S. Lazic, S. Cakic, I. Rubezic Lukic, N. Popovic, and T. Popovic at the 30. Annual Conferenc on Information Technology IT 2026. This was part of mentoring activities and efforts related to development of young researchers.
The paper was presented at the conference by Ms. Sanja Lazic (MSc candidate)
ABSTRACT – Early identification of type 2 diabetes (T2D) and prediabetes enables timely interventions, yet screening often relies on self-reported data rather than laboratory testing. This work compares lightweight Machine Learning (ML) models: Logistic Regression (LR), Random Forest (RF), Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost), Light Gradient Boosting Machine (LightGBM), and Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) trained on 21 self-reported indicators from the 2015 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) dataset for three-class classification (no diabetes, prediabetes, diabetes). We propose a screening-oriented evaluation where a probability threshold is selected to achieve a target sensitivity (recall) of 0.80. LightGBM achieves balanced accuracy of 0.52 and precision of 0.33 at the target sensitivity, with 38% of cases flagged. Tree SHapley Additive exPlanations (TreeSHAP) highlight general health status, age category, body mass index (BMI), and hypertension as dominant predictors. A FastAPI web application provides individual risk estimates and instance-level explanations. The pipeline demonstrates feasibility of interpretable, calibrated screening from non-laboratory data.
AI-AGE team represenatives participated in the various events and activities at IT2026 conference in Zabljak. We ook part in discussions related to Lessons Learned for HPC and AI applications in various domains in Montenegro. We also participated in the special session dedicated to project results presentations where we had a chance to discuss the project with researchers from Montenegro and the region.
AI-AGE was featured at the project results presentations
We particiapted in EuroCC4SEE panel on Lessons Learned for HPC and AI applications
High-Performance Computing (HPC) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are rapidly transforming the landscape of healthcare — moving far beyond research prototypes into solutions that can shape clinical practice and improve patient outcomes. This transition from strategy to real-world impact was the focus of the recent EuroCC2 initiative “Symposium: HPC and AI Driven Innovation in Healthcare”. AI-AGE team participated in organization, coordination, and presentations at this event.
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The Vision: Bridging Strategy and Clinical Practice
The event was organized in cross-collaboration with EuroCC2 & EuroCC4SEE
AI-AGE project was presented and further collaboration with EuroCC3 was discussed
Healthcare is today generating vast volumes of data — from medical imaging to electronic health records, genomics, wearable sensors and beyond. HPC provides the computational power needed to process and analyse this data at scale, while AI techniques such as deep learning unlock patterns that are invisible to traditional analysis methods. Together, HPC and AI form a powerful synergy for healthcare innovation:
Accelerated diagnostics: AI models trained on large annotated datasets can assist clinicians by accurately identifying disease signs in imaging and other modalities.
Biomarker discovery and precision medicine: High-throughput computing enables the discovery of subtle biological signals indicative of disease progression or treatment response.
Predictive and personalised care: HPC-enabled AI workflows can predict patient outcomes and support real-time clinical decision making.
Symposium included presentations of successs stories from the region
This strategic capability — from data to insights to impact — was the core theme explored through EuroCC2 activities in Montenegro and the wider South-Eastern Europe region.
Key Takeaways for Healthcare Innovation
From Research to Clinical Utility HPC and AI solutions are no longer confined to laboratories. With appropriate infrastructure, data governance and clinical integration pathways, these technologies are being translated into tools that support healthcare professionals in diagnosis and treatment.
Regional and Cross-Institutional Collaboration The EuroCC2 framework — including the National Competence Centre Montenegro — brings together academic institutions, healthcare providers, and technology partners to share resources, expertise, and training. These collaborative ecosystems are essential for building sustainable HPC-AI capacity in healthcare.
Capacity Building and Skills Development One of the crucial pillars of impactful HPC and AI adoption is training. Workshops, seminars, and hands-on sessions equip researchers, clinicians, and students with the skills to leverage HPC and AI tools effectively in their domains.
Enabling Infrastructure Access Through EuroCC2 and related programmes, researchers and practitioners gain access to European HPC resources — reducing barriers to entry for high-end computing and enabling complex analyses that were previously impractical.
What This Means for Montenegro and Beyond
Montenegro, alongside partner regions across Europe, is building the foundation for a healthcare ecosystem that integrates HPC and AI into everyday clinical workflows. By investing in strategic computing infrastructure, enabling cross-sector collaboration, and fostering technical expertise, the potential to improve patient outcomes, streamline clinical processes, and support data-driven medicine is growing stronger.
The event gathered representatives from Healthcare and IT sectors already involved in research and development of HPC and AI driven solutions for healthcare and medical research. More info at NCC Montenegro site: [link].
Over 20 participants in the Symposium, important discussion of next steps
High-Performance Computing (HPC) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are increasingly moving beyond research laboratories into real clinical environments. Across Montenegro and the SEE region, promising AI solutions have been developed for medical image analysis, biomarker detection, and predictive diagnostics. The critical challenge today is ensuring their structured transition from research prototypes to validated, deployable tools within healthcare systems.
Symposium on HPC and AI in Healthcare and Medicine co-organiozed by Ai-AGE
This event addresses precisely that transition. It focuses on how HPC infrastructure, interdisciplinary collaboration, and coordinated ecosystem support can accelerate the integration of AI into everyday clinical practice. Particular attention will be given to available computational capacities, real-life use cases, and pathways toward sustainable deployment.
The event is organized as a joint initiative between NCC Montenegro and NCC Bosnia and Herzegovina, within the broader framework of EuroCC 2 and EuroCC4SEE. It also represents a form of cross-project pollination with the AI-AGE project, demonstrating how research-driven innovation can evolve into applied healthcare solutions through regional cooperation.
AI-AGE will be featured in the presentation session
Researchers, clinicians, innovators, and industry partners are invited to join the discussion, exchange expertise, and contribute to shaping the next steps for HPC- and AI-driven healthcare across Southeast Europe. The event is scheduled for Friday, 13 Feb 2026. Please contact NCC Montenegro for further details.
AI-AGE researchers will take part in the national conference “AI DIRECTLY: Montenegro in the Age of AI Challenges” — organised by the Association of Managers of Montenegro (AMM) and the Science and Technology Park of Montenegro. The event brings together leading experts from academia, industry, and the public sector to explore how artificial intelligence is reshaping competitiveness, business models, and the innovation landscape in Montenegro.
Our team will participate in the panel “A New Era of Business – How AI Is Changing the Rules of the Game”. Through this engagement, AI-AGE will contribute perspectives on cutting-edge AI research, including the project’s work on discovering non-invasive biomarkers of aging. Participation in this national event strengthens our collaboration with Montenegro’s AI and business community and reinforces our commitment to advancing responsible and impactful AI research.
AI-AGE team members to participate in the AI DIRECTLY conference organised by AMM
The AI-AGE project (Artificial Intelligence Supported Identification of Novel Non-invasive Biomarkers of Aging) was presented at the 13th Science Festival – European Researchers’ Night, held on September 26 at the Bemax Arena in Podgorica. As Montenegro’s largest science outreach event, the festival highlighted how research and innovation shape everyday life, and AI-AGE stood out by demonstrating the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) in medicine.
AI-AGE featured at the 13th Science FEstival organized by PRONA
Through AI-AGE, researchers are developing advanced AI models that analyze medical images, such as retinal scans, to identify novel biomarkers of aging. These efforts, supported by HPC resources provided through NCC Montenegro (EuroCC2 and EuroCC4SEE), aim to accelerate early detection of age-related diseases and advance personalized healthcare. By bridging AI, HPC, and biomedical science, AI-AGE showcases Montenegro’s active role in the European Research Area and its contribution to the future of healthcare innovation.
This event was focused on connecting science, innovation and societyAI-AGE was part of the presentation related to HPC and AI
Successful presentation and from Dejan Babic from University of Donja Gorica at the EuroCC4SEE Seminar organized by NCC Turkiye. This was a part of the EuroCC4SEE project, five countries – Türkiye, Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina – have joined forces to present an engaging online seminar series titled: “5 Beats of Intelligence: AI Meets Diverse Domains”.
Successful presentation at the Seminar series, around 25 attendees
More details on schedule of seminar presentations and and registrations can be accessed at NCC Turkiye website at the foillowing link.
The presentation covered use cases from the AI-AGE project implemented at UDG with NCC support
The one-day short course “From Personal Computing to HPC”, held on April 29, 2025, successfully brought together around 20 participants from academia, industry, and public institutions. The course offered a practical introduction to the evolution from everyday computing environments to high-performance computing (HPC), with a focus on real-world applications and national infrastructure. Mr Dejan Babic gave presentation on the use of UDG cluster for solving use cases pertinent to AI applications in medicine.
Dejan Babić and Elvis Taruh guided attendees through key concepts, showcasing how HPC resources can be leveraged for data-intensive tasks and advanced simulations. Through interactive discussions and live demonstrations, participants gained insights into the capabilities of Montenegro’s EuroCC infrastructure and how to access and utilize HPC resources for their own research or professional needs. The course sparked meaningful exchanges and interest in further training, highlighting the growing demand for computational skills in diverse fields. AI-AGE computing node was featured in the training that was done in the context of EuroCC2 and EuroCC4SEE projects. More about the event at the HPC Montenegro website [link].
Researcher and associate at the University of Donja Gorica, Dejan Babić, MA, participated in the panel “Digital Economy” organized by the Montenegrin Academy of Sciences and Arts and the Department of Social Sciences. In his presentation, he shared his impressions from a recent visit to China, emphasizing the openness and cordiality of the Chinese hosts, as well as the high level of professionalism at universities. He particularly emphasized the way in which China, as a global leader in the field of artificial intelligence, strategically invests in the development of infrastructure and human capital, which enables the rapid application of innovations and the shaping of a modern digital economy through the synergy of the academic community and industry.
Presentation on experiences from the mobility visit to Bejing in China
In the continuation of his presentation, Dejan Babić MA also presented parts of his doctoral research focused on the application of artificial intelligence in medicine, especially in the analysis of aging biomarkers through the fundus, which he is implementing through the AIAGE project. He highlighted the challenges facing the healthcare sector, such as diagnostic errors and the workload of medical staff, as well as the potential of AI technologies to improve the accuracy, speed and accessibility of healthcare. He paid special attention to generative models, predictive diagnostics and explainable AI, as the most promising directions of development that contribute to the digital transformation of healthcare and open up new opportunities for economic growth through innovation and cooperation between different sectors.
Presentation of research activities based on AI-AGE use case
