2025 T-CAIREM Conference: Speakers
Vivek Natarajan
Research Lead, Google DeepMind
Advancing science and medicine with AI physician-scientists
Vivek Natarajan is a Research Scientist at Google DeepMind leading research at the intersection of AI, science and medicine. He is the lead researcher behind Med-PaLM (Nature, 2023) and Med-PaLM 2 (Nature Medicine, 2025), the first AI systems to obtain passing and expert-level scores on US Medical License exam questions, respectively.
Vivek also co-leads Project AMIE, a research program aiming to build and democratize medical superintelligence. Over the past year, AMIE has shown promising potential in controlled settings, including primary care, specialty care, and complex diagnostic challenges, as both a standalone (Nature, 2025) and assistive tool for clinicians (Nature 2025). Finally, Vivek recently co-led the development of the AI co-scientist - a virtual AI collaborator designed to augment scientists, help uncover new original knowledge and accelerate the clock speed of scientific discoveries.
Prior to Google, Vivek worked on multimodal assistant systems at Facebook AI Research. He is also part of the faculty for executive education at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in a part-time capacity.
Bruce Schneier
Public Interest Technologist, Harvard University
Bruce Schneier is an internationally renowned security technologist, called a "security guru" by the Economist. He is the New York Times best-selling author of 14 books -- including A Hacker's Mind -- as well as hundreds of articles, essays, and academic papers. His influential newsletter Crypto-Gram and blog Schneier on Security are read by over 250,000 people. Schneier is a fellow at the Berkman-Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University, a Lecturer in Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School, a board member of the Electronic Frontier Foundation and AccessNow, and an advisory board member of EPIC and VerifiedVoting.org. He is the Chief of Security Architecture at Inrupt, Inc.
Michael Liut
Assistant Professor, Computer Science, University of Toronto - Mississauga
Dr. Michael Liut is an Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream in Computer Science at the University of Toronto. His work focuses on the intersections of technology, education, and applied computing, with a strong emphasis on integrating adaptive and emerging tools to enhance the learning experience. Dr. Liut has extensive expertise in designing and delivering innovative educational programs that bridge theory and practice, preparing students for the rapidly evolving technological landscape. His current interests explore the role of language models—both small and large—in shaping the future of teaching and learning, particularly in computing and medical education, where accuracy, accessibility, and adaptability are critical. A dedicated educator and researcher, Dr. Liut is passionate about helping learners and instructors understand how to responsibly leverage AI to improve knowledge transfer, foster critical thinking, and support lifelong learning.
Speakers, Panelists, and Moderators
We're delighted to feature several experts and presenters at the forefront of Artificial Intelligence (AI) health innovations. This page is updated daily, so please check back as we add more speakers.
Muhammad Mamdani
T-CAIREM Director
Dr. Mamdani founded the Ontario Drug Policy Research Network (ODPRN), the Li Ka Shing Centre for Healthcare Analytics Research and Training (LKS-CHART), and the Applied Health Research Centre (AHRC) at St. Michael’s Hospital. He was previously named one of Canada’s Top 40 under 40 and has published approximately 500 research studies in peer-reviewed medical journals which have been cited over 35,000 times. He holds a Doctor of Pharmacy degree (PharmD) from the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor), a fellowship in pharmacoeconomics and outcomes research at the Detroit Medical Center, a Masters in Economics from Wayne State University, and a Master of Public Health degree from Harvard University with a concentration in biostatistics and epidemiological principles.
Mamatha Bhat
T-CAIREM Partnerships & Engagement Lead
Dr. Mamatha Bhat completed her medical training at McGill University,Transplant Hepatology training at Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, and a PhD in Medical Biophysics at the University of Toronto. Dr. Bhat’s group has developed and is deploying ML algorithms trained on clinical and ‘omics data to optimize the long-term outcomes of transplant patients in a personalized manner. She has received the Polanyi Prize, Early Researcher Award from the Ministry of Research and Innovation, CASL/CIHR Research Excellence award, American Society of Transplantation (AST) Basic Science Career Development Award and is a Fellow of the AST.
Justin Scaini
Group Head & Executive Vice President, Strategy, Innovation and Transformation, Kids Help Phone
Justin Scaini is the Group Head and Executive Vice President, Strategy, Innovation and Transformation at Kids Help Phone, where he leads acceleratorKHP, driving forward game-changing innovation, data science, technology operations and organizational transformation. Justin began his career as a management consultant at Accenture before transitioning into health services, where he designed and led the pro-bono consulting program at Capitalize for Kids, supporting 30+ mental health organizations across Canada. Prior to joining Kids Help Phone, he served as a Senior Strategy Consultant at Mackenzie Health, playing a key role in the organization’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the opening of the Cortellucci Vaughan Hospital.
David Rosenstein
Physician, Michael Garron Hospital
Dr. David Rosenstein has been a staff emergency physician for over 20 years at Michael Garron Hospital, an academic hospital affiliated with the University of Toronto. A Department of Family Medicine lecturer, he also teaches first-year medical students the core clinical skills course, as well as students on rotation in the emergency department. He served as the hospital’s CMIO for 12 years during its digital transformation to CPOE and electronic documentation, and currently leads the emergency department’s IT efforts. He helped spearhead several innovations, including a comprehensive ED virtual care program during the COVID pandemic, as well as an Emergency Department Wait Time Clock initiative. He is now leading the implementation of AI ambient scribe technology in the ER. When not in the hospital, he can be found painting on an iPad, building a cedar deck with his kids, or canoeing in southern Ontario.
Shauna Watson
Liver Transplant Clinical Nurse Coordinator, Toronto General Hospital
Shauna Watson is a Liver Transplant Clinical Nurse Coordinator at the University Health Network’s Ajmera Transplant Centre. Since completing her Master of Nursing (MN) in 2012, she has provided comprehensive care coordination to liver transplant patients and their families. She also serves as a Clinical Faculty Advisor with the Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing at the University of Toronto, where she mentors nursing students in their final practicum. At the conference, she will share her experience implementing Epic Nebula’s InBasket Augmented Response Technology (ART) to streamline responses to patient medical advice request messages through the myUHN patient portal.
James Ehiagwina
Youth Representative, Kids Help Phone
James Ehiagwina is a fourth-year Nursing student at York University with a deep passion for mental health advocacy and a commitment to creating inclusive, supportive spaces for all. He currently serves on the National Youth Council for Kids Help Phone, where he contributes to national conversations on youth mental health and works to improve access to essential support services. James also serves on the Kids Help Phone Black Advisory Council, where he offers insight from a Black youth perspective to ensure that mental health services are culturally responsive and address systemic barriers affecting access for Black communities. At York University, James serves as a Student Success Peer Mentor Lead with the Black Excellence (BE YU) initiative and as a Student Senator representing the Faculty of Health in York’s Senate. He has previously held leadership roles, including two terms as President of the Canadian Black Nurses Alliance (CBNA) – York University Chapter.
Jennifer Gibson
Director, University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics
Jennifer Gibson is the Sun Life Financial Chair in Bioethics and the Director of the University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics (JCB), an Associate Professor in the Division of Clinical Public Health and the Institute of Health Policy, Management, and Evaluation of the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, and director of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Bioethics at the University of Toronto. Jennifer holds a PhD in Philosophy (bioethics and political theory) with a prior academic background in the biological sciences. Jennifer is a health policy ethics scholar whose research, teaching and policy work focus on ethical issues in contemporary health institutions and systems, particularly the role and interaction of values in governance and management decision-making. Jennifer has advised governments and policymakers on diverse policy issues such as medical assistance in dying, public health emergencies, health technology assessment, drug funding and supply, and resource allocation.
Nicole Kozloff
Psychiatrist, Slaight Centre Early Intervention Service and Director, CAMH
Nicole Kozloff is a child and youth psychiatrist and scientist at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, where she directs the Margaret and Wallace McCain Centre for Child, Youth & Family Mental Health. She is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto. She completed medical school at Queen's University, residency in psychiatry and child and adolescent psychiatry at the University of Toronto, a postdoctoral fellowship supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research at St. Michael's Hospital, and a Master of Science at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health. Her research focuses on improving the delivery of mental health services for youth, particularly those with complex needs. She uses a wide range of methods in her work, engaging youth and family members with lived experience expertise throughout the research process. In addition to experience in various community-based settings, her primary clinical work is in CAMH's Slaight Centre Early Intervention Service.
Mary Jane Dykeman
Partner, INQ Law
Mary Jane Dykeman is a partner at INQ Law, a health and data firm. As a data strategist, she helps clients harness, identify and execute opportunities for their data. She works on de-identification, shared data platforms, privacy, artificial intelligence, and health research. She is Deputy Chair, Canadian Blood Services Research Ethics Board; Chair, EpiSign Inc., a London Health Sciences Centre startup in the genomic space; advisor to Sweden’s Wilhelm Foundation and its Undiagnosed Hackathon; and editorial board member to Future Medicine AI.
Alejandro Berlin
Clinician Scientist, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre
Dr. Ale Berlin is a staff clinician-scientist radiation oncologist at the Princess Margaret (PM) Cancer Center. He completed his training in Chile, Israel, and Canada. His clinical practice focuses on the discovery and clinical evaluation of novel therapeutics capitalizing on genomic characterization of genitourinary malignancies, and advanced molecular and MR imaging. Dr. Berlin is a PI of the NRG GU010 study investigating the use of clinicogenomic risk stratification for treatment individualization in men with localized prostate cancer. Dr. Berlin also leads a clinical initiative to quantify human and machine performance during the clinical deployment of an in-house-developed AI radiotherapy planning method for prostate cancer.
Heather Ross
Head, Division of Cardiology, University Health Network
Heather Ross CM, MD, DSc, MHSc, FRCP (C), FACC is a Professor of Medicine at the University of Toronto, and Head of the Division of Cardiology at the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre. She received the Order of Canada in 2020 (CM), and an Honorary Doctor of Science (DSc) from Queen’s University 2021. She is the Site Lead for the Ted Rogers Centre for Heart Research and holds the Loretta A. Rogers Chair in Heart Function and the Pfizer Chair in Cardiovascular Research. She received her medical degree from the University of British Columbia, Canada, Cardiology training at Dalhousie University, and a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Cardiac Transplantation at Stanford University, California. She earned her Master’s Degree in Bioethics from the University of Toronto. She has published over 450 peer-reviewed articles, with an H index of 80 and > 26 thousand citations, trained > 45 highly qualified personnel and received > 46 million dollars in peer-reviewed research funding.
Kristian Stephens
Patient Partner, University Health Network
Kristian Stephens underwent an orthotopic liver transplant in 2017 due to primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC). He raises awareness about PSC and organ donation by volunteering as an editor for PSC Partners Seeking a Cure Canada's newsletter and speaking to high school students through the Toronto Transplant Institute's High School Outreach Initiative. Kristian holds B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in agriculture. He is an Agricultural Extension Coordinator at the Credit Valley Conservation Authority in Mississauga
Steve Wolinsky
Patient Partner, North York General Hospital
Steve Wolinsky is a retired chemical engineer who spent his career in various management roles in industry. He now spends his time supporting health care as a Patient Experience Partner at North York General. He is also the co-chair of the patient council at CPCRN, Canadian Primary Care Research Network. He is a strong supporter of the need to hear the patient voice in health care.
Anna Goldenberg
T-CAIREM Research Co-Lead
Dr. Anna Goldenberg is a professor in the departments of Computer Science and Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology. She is a Varma Family Chair in Biomedical Informatics and Artificial Intelligence at SickKids Research Institute, as well as a CIFAR AI Chair at the Vector Institute. She co-chairs AI in Medicine initiatives at both UofT and SickKids. Dr. Goldenberg trained in machine learning at Carnegie Mellon University with a postdoctoral focus in Computational Biology and Medicine. The current focus of her lab is on developing and deploying machine learning models to healthcare. Dr Goldenberg’s lab is strongly committed to creating responsible AI to benefit patients across a variety of conditions.
Devin Singh
T-CAIREM Research Co-Lead
Dr. Singh is one of Canada's first physicians to specialize in clinical artificial intelligence. He is an emergency physician at The Hospital for Sick Children and holds a Masters in Computer Science degree from the University of Toronto. He is an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto in both the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and the Division of Computer Science and is an emerging scholar helping to innovate the regulatory, privacy, and ethical landscape for AI in Canada. Most recently, he co-founded Hero AI, an innovative healthcare technology start-up dedicated to empowering patients and healthcare providers with AI.