Sabancı University Driving the Future of Privacy-Preserving AI in Healthcare

Sabancı University Driving the Future of Privacy-Preserving AI in Healthcare

Sabancı University is taking a leading role in shaping the future of healthcare innovation through its active participation in the groundbreaking PHASE IV AI project, a major European initiative redefining how artificial intelligence can be used securely and effectively in medicine.

Funded under the European Union’s Horizon Europe programme, this ambitious €6.6 million project brings together 20 partners from 10 countries with a shared vision: unlocking the power of health data and AI without compromising patient privacy.

Reimagining Health Data: From Silos to Secure Collaboration

Today, one of the biggest challenges in healthcare innovation is clear: while AI thrives on large datasets, sensitive medical data is fragmented across institutions and protected by strict privacy regulations.

PHASE IV AI addresses this challenge head-on by developing a next-generation Health Data Hub, offering:

• Data as a Service (DaaS)
• Model as a Service (MaaS)

Through advanced technologies such as Federated Learning, Synthetic Data, and Secure Multi-Party Computation, researchers can now train powerful AI models without ever transferring raw patient data.

This approach ensures both scientific progress and data sovereignty, marking a major step forward for trustworthy AI in healthcare .

Sabancı University’s Cutting-Edge Contributions

At the heart of the project, Sabancı University is delivering key technological innovations.

One notable achievement is the development of the HEonGPU library by the Sabancı University team, which enables high-performance computation over encrypted data. The library has been successfully applied to logistic regression inference on prostate cancer datasets, demonstrating that strong privacy guarantees can be achieved without compromising usability or performance. 

In addition, Sabancı University researchers actively contribute to the global scientific community, presenting their work at leading conferences, reinforcing the university’s international impact.

From Research to Real-World Impact

PHASE IV AI is not just a research project; it is delivering tangible solutions for some of Europe’s most critical health challenges:

• Lung Cancer
• Prostate Cancer
• Ischemic Stroke

Through real-world pilot studies, the project demonstrates how AI-driven models and synthetic data can enhance:

• Early diagnosis
• Risk prediction
• Clinical decision-making

These advances are already being validated through collaborative workshops and pilot demonstrations across Europe.

Shaping the Future of Digital Health in Europe

The project’s impact goes beyond technology. PHASE IV AI has been selected for the European Blockchain Regulatory Sandbox, enabling direct collaboration with EU regulators to align innovations with upcoming frameworks such as the European Health Data Space.

As the project moves toward its final phase, with a closing conference scheduled for June 2026 in Turku, Finland, Sabancı University continues to play a key role in ensuring that privacy-preserving AI becomes a cornerstone of future healthcare systems.

A Bold Vision for the Future

By combining cutting-edge AI technologies with strong ethical and regulatory foundations, PHASE IV AI is paving the way for a future where innovation and privacy are no longer in conflict but instead work together to improve lives.

Sabancı University is proud to be at the forefront of this transformation.

Learn More

For more information about the PHASE IV AI project and ongoing developments, you can visit:

Project Website: https://www.phase4ai-project.eu/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/phase4ai-euproject/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Phase4AI-EUProject/61551668168849/