Practical applications of artificial intelligence in infectious disease surveillance and control: opportunities, challenges, and ethical considerations.

Background

Artificial intelligence (AI) has been increasingly recognized as a public health tool with applications ranging from epidemiology, pandemic preparedness to infection control. Despite these advances, the integration of AI presents significant risks that demand careful oversight.

Objectives

The objectives of this review are to (1) present practical AI platforms that aid clinicians, researchers, and policymakers with infectious disease (ID) surveillance, prediction, and infection control and (2) to raise awareness of the risks of using AI in infectious diseases and public health. SOURCES PubMed was searched for relevant literature published through August 1, 2025 and was updated through July 24, 2026. CONTENT The review highlights AI applications in public health surveillance, exemplified by platforms such as ProMED-mail and HealthMap, which enable timely outbreak detection. In research, AI tools like AlphaFold accelerate pathogen characterization, expediting countermeasure development. Within healthcare settings, AI supports infection control by tracking protocol compliance, predicting HAIs, and detecting antibiotic resistance patterns. The manuscript further explores the dual-use dilemma of AI, addressing risks related to biothreat creation and misinformation dissemination, alongside key ethical issues including data privacy and cybersecurity. IMPLICATIONS AI holds transformative potential for infectious disease surveillance and control, benefiting clinicians, researchers, and public health professionals. However, the risk of misuse underscores the urgent need for comprehensive regulatory frameworks, ethical guidelines, and robust security measures to ensure responsible and safe implementation in public health contexts.