Deborah DiSanzo is leaving her position heading up IBM Watson Health, Stat News reports.
It notes that the circumstances surrounding DiSanzo's departure are unclear, but that Watson Health has run into some trouble. Back in July, Stat News reported that IBM's Watson supercomputer, which the company has been developing as a tool to help guide clinicians' treatment approaches, has sometimes provided inappropriate cancer treatment advice. Gizmodo reported that internal documents seemed to place the blame on Watson's training that incorporating some physicians' preferences instead of relying solely on the data. In addition, Stat News says IBM has lost some customers and has encountered increased competition from Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft.
DiSanzo, who joined the company in 2015, is to move to its strategy team for IBM Cognitive Solutions, and John Kelly, currently the senior vice president for Cognitive Solutions and IBM Research, will serve as acting head of IBM Watson Health, it adds.