The value of Collaboration in Eye Research

Slide deck from a webinar hosted by Fight for Sight of Professor Pearse Keane and Professor Alastair Denniston. Together, they have jointly published over 90 papers that advance our understanding of eye disease.
Pearse Keane is Professor of Artificial Medical Intelligence at UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, and a consultant ophthalmologist at Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. He is also Director of the INSIGHT health data research hub programme based at Moorfields Eye Hospital.
Since 2020, Pearse has been funded by UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) as a Future Leaders Fellow, and in 2023, he became a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Senior Investigator. He is originally from Ireland and received his medical degree from University College Dublin (UCD), graduating in 2002.
In 2016, he initiated a collaboration between Moorfields Eye Hospital and Google DeepMind, aiming to develop artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms for the early detection and treatment of retinal diseases. In August 2018, the first results of this collaboration were published in the journal Nature Medicine.
Professor Alastair Denniston is Professor of Regulatory Science and Innovation at the University of Birmingham and Honorary Consultant Ophthalmologist at University Hospitals Birmingham NHSFT. He is a leader in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Digital Health Technologies.
Professor Denniston is an NIHR Senior Investigator, Member of the Regulatory Horizons Council to the UK Government, Non-Executive Director to the Health Research Authority, AI Strategic Advisor to Health Data Research UK, Director of the NIHR-funded Incubator of AI & Digital Healthcare and Director of the UK’s Centre of Excellence for Regulatory Science in AI & Digital HealthTech (CERSI-AI). Advisory work includes to international regulators and ministries of health, and to the WHO.
At the University of Birmingham, Professor Denniston leads the AI & Digital Health Group, a research and policy group focused on the evaluation, regulation and implementation of AI health technologies. The group’s work seeks to ensure AI technologies are safe, effective and equitable, and benefit patients and society.

1. Fight For Sight © [New name] 2024 1 Webinar: The Importance of Collaboration in Research

2. A little bit of housekeeping Live captions are available during the webinar Slides, a transcript and a recording, will be made available post-webinar Please use the Q&A window to ask questions We’ll send you an email including a survey after the webinar © [New name] 2024 2

3. Welcome to our webinar Host: Sarah Kidner, Head of Communications and External Affairs Speaker: Professor Pearse Keane, Professor of Artificial Medical Intelligence at the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology Speaker: Professor Alastair Denniston, Professor of Regulatory Science and Innovation at the University of Birmingham © [New name] 2024 3

4. About Fight for Sight We fund the brilliant minds and bright ideas that put change in sight . Fight for Sight 4

5. Our brand story, imagine… Imagine being told that you, or someone you love, is losing their sight. At that moment, two profound questions present: Can this be stopped? How do I live my life? © [New name] 2024 5

6. Investing to put change in sight 6 © [New name] 2024 Over the next five years, we plan to distribute £30m in grants.

7. Research strategy Our researchers are working to better understand, diagnose, prevent and treat vision loss.

8. Social change The partnerships we build and initiatives we support are changing lives for blind and vision impaired people.

9. Panel Discussion © Fight for Sight 2024 9

10. Q & A © Fight for Sight 2024 10

11. Useful resources Read more about Prof Pearse’s work Read more about Prof Alastar’s work Read more about our small grants Discover more about eye conditions in our A to Z Fundraise for us through your steps – Summit for Sight Read more about the impact of the scientific research and social change we’re funding Please donate and help us fund more scientific research Find out how to apply for funding from Fight for Sight © Fight for Sight 2024 11

12. Fight for Sight Presents: Our next webinar Tackling the SEND crisis   Thursday 6 th November 2025 at 12:00-13:00. Register here   Join us for an important conversation on the ongoing crisis in Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) support. What support is available, what is working and what needs to change? Our panel of leaders from MoorVision , Special Needs Jungle and RSBC explore the reality of the crisis and share their lived experiences working in this space. They will dive into the importance of proper SEND support, the challenges the sector is facing, and what the future has in store.    Fight for Sight 12

13. Fight for Sight Presents: Our next scientific research webinar Building mentorship opportunities in vision research   Wednesday 21 st January 2026 at 12:00-13:00. Register here   Good mentorship is essential for building the next generation of vision researchers. Eye research is an underfunded area; in 2018, just over 1.5 percent (£24 million) of the £1.4 billion that UK Research and Innovation, government and other public bodies invested in medical research was for eye research. This lack of funding means it is hard to get the brilliant minds we need into the field. That's why Fight for Sight offers two mentorship opportunities: our  UK Vision Research Network Doctoral Training Programme , and our competitive  PhD Studentships . In this webinar we'll be hosting Professor Marcela Votruba from Cardiff University and Dr Monika Winter from Northumbria University, to discuss their perspectives on the importance of mentorship across different research career stages.     Fight for Sight 13

14. Thank you © [New name] 2024 14 #FightforSightPresents www.fightforsight.org.uk