Decoding the Lungs: Brainomix, PFF, and the AI Shift in Pulmonary Care

OXFORD, England and CHICAGO – October 14, 2026 – For decades, the output of medical imaging has operated as a one-way street: a highly technical data stream flowing from the scanner to the radiologist, and ultimately to the specialist, leaving the patient to interpret their prognosis through the filter of a brief clinical consultation. But as artificial intelligence begins to automate the most complex diagnostic tasks, a new imperative is emerging in the medtech sector. It is no longer enough for an algorithm to simply identify disease; it must also communicate it.

This shift is the driving force behind a newly announced partnership between Brainomix, an Oxford University medtech spinout known for its AI-powered imaging software, and the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation (PFF). The multi-phase patient engagement initiative aims to explore how AI-powered computed tomography (CT) analysis can help people living with pulmonary fibrosis (PF) and other fibrotic interstitial lung diseases (ILD) better understand their condition and participate in shared treatment decisions.

The collaboration centers on the Brainomix 360 e-Lung platform, an FDA-cleared and CE-marked AI tool that provides automatic quantifications and visualizations of radiographic features in lung CT scans. While the clinical utility of such a tool is clear, this initiative represents a strategic pivot toward patient-centered AI. By leveraging the PFF's extensive Care Center Network and patient community, the project will evaluate how complex, AI-derived visual and quantitative outputs are experienced and understood by the patients whose lives depend on them.

The Triad Strategy: Tech, Advocacy, and Big Pharma

To understand the broader market implications of this partnership, one must look beyond the immediate software interface and examine the underlying commercial ecosystem. The global antifibrotic drugs market is currently experiencing explosive growth, valued at $8.2 billion in 2025 and projected to reach $15.7 billion by 2033. Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) remains the dominant application segment, driving intense pharmaceutical investment.

The Brainomix-PFF initiative does not exist in a vacuum; it is a critical component of PROGRESS-PPF, a broader research collaboration between Brainomix and pharmaceutical giant Boehringer Ingelheim. Boehringer is a heavy hitter in the respiratory space, boasting established therapies like nintedanib (Ofev) and the recently FDA-approved Jascayd (nerandomilast) for IPF.

This triad—a nimble AI developer, a powerful patient advocacy group, and a multinational pharmaceutical corporation—highlights a sophisticated strategy to validate clinical surrogate endpoints. In progressive pulmonary fibrosis, lung tissue scars and stiffens over time. However, structural changes often precede noticeable physical symptoms. If a patient feels fine but their CT scan shows microscopic progression, convincing them to begin or maintain a regimen of costly and potentially harsh antifibrotic drugs is a significant clinical hurdle.

By bringing the PFF into the fold, Brainomix and Boehringer Ingelheim are effectively attempting to solve the adherence and communication gap. If e-Lung can translate opaque pixel data into clear, objective progress trackers that patients inherently understand, it creates a more compelling case for early, sustained pharmaceutical intervention. It is a masterclass in aligning medtech utility with biopharma commercial objectives through the lens of patient advocacy.

Translating Pixels to Patients

At the clinical level, the partnership addresses one of the most persistent red flags in pulmonology: the disconnect between objective disease progression and subjective patient experience.

Patients living with fibrotic lung diseases often face a terrifying ambiguity. Traditional lung function tests, such as Forced Vital Capacity (FVC), can fluctuate and sometimes fail to capture the nuanced, early-stage architectural destruction occurring deep within the lung tissue. When changes in the disease are not evident from symptoms alone, treatment conversations stall.

"Patients are at the heart of everything we are trying to achieve with e-Lung," said Dr. Michalis Papadakis, CEO and Co-Founder of Brainomix. "While our technology can provide new imaging tools for lung disease, we need to understand how those tools inform clinical understanding and how that information is communicated to and understood by the people living with the disease. Our partnership with the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation will help us listen directly to patients and caregivers and explore how AI-powered imaging tools can support greater understanding, communication and shared decision-making."

The PFF brings unparalleled access to the lived experience of pulmonary fibrosis. Through its network, the initiative will explore exactly what patients want to know about their scans, how they respond to specific visual outputs, and where quantitative metrics provide the most reassurance or clarity.

"People living with pulmonary fibrosis and their caregivers bring an essential perspective to the development of new approaches to understanding and managing this disease," noted Scott Staszak, President and CEO of the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation. "By listening directly to the community, we can better understand what information patients find valuable and how it can support conversations with their healthcare teams."

From Black Box to Bedside: Overcoming the Usability Hurdle

Despite the optimism surrounding AI in radiology, the integration of automated CT quantification into routine care pathways remains a significant hurdle. The competitive landscape for thoracic imaging AI is increasingly crowded. Companies like Imbio (recently acquired by 4DMedical), Riverain Technologies, and Thirona all offer sophisticated quantitative CT capabilities for various lung conditions, utilizing advanced algorithms to detect nodules, quantify tissue changes, and standardize lung volumes.

Where Brainomix is attempting to carve its moat is in the specific, validated application of progressive pulmonary fibrosis—and in proving that its tool does not just add noise to a radiologist's screen. Industry experts frequently note that while AI can improve efficiency and detection rates, it can also induce "alert fatigue" or alienate clinicians if the data is not seamlessly integrated into existing workflows.

Brainomix's e-Lung has already shown formidable diagnostic power. In May 2026, the retrospective REVISE-PPF study demonstrated that the platform could enable earlier diagnosis of PPF by up to 28 months compared to local clinical diagnoses. However, clinical power is only half the battle. The current prospective multicenter study in the U.S. aims to generate real-world evidence on e-Lung's clinical impact at scale. By ensuring the outputs are not just accurate, but intuitively communicable to the end-user—the patient—Brainomix is addressing the usability hurdle that has sidelined other digital health innovations.

The Clinical Trial Catalyst

For investors and market analysts, the most compelling aspect of the Brainomix technology may lie in its application as a clinical trial accelerator. The traditional endpoints for pulmonary fibrosis trials have historically been blunt instruments, requiring long study durations and large patient cohorts to prove efficacy.

AI-powered quantitative imaging is rewriting this paradigm. Just this month, data emerged showing that e-Lung demonstrated sensitivity to the effects of antifibrotic treatment in Phase III progressive pulmonary fibrosis studies, such as the INBUILD trial. The software successfully measured the effects of nintedanib on precise metrics like total disease extent (TDE) and reticulovascular score (RVS). Furthermore, in September 2026, Brainomix announced positive results from an AI-driven analysis of Endeavor BioMedicines' Phase 2a trial of taladegib, detecting significant treatment effects across multiple measures of lung structure in a smaller, shorter clinical study.

This capability to provide richer, more sensitive insights from clinical trials is a massive value proposition for pharmaceutical companies looking to expedite drug development and reduce trial costs. By partnering with the PFF to ensure these same metrics are patient-friendly, Brainomix is positioning e-Lung as a universal language for pulmonary fibrosis—one that speaks to the algorithm, the trial sponsor, the prescribing clinician, and, most importantly, the patient breathing on the other side of the scan.