Dr. Kai Block

Biography

Kai Tobias Block is an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Radiology at New York University. His research focuses on developing Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) techniques to enhance reliability and simplify medical imaging processes, aiming to make examinations accessible and efficient for a diverse range of clinical applications. He works to bridge the gap between laboratory innovations and clinical use, having created software infrastructure that supports the rapid translation of research prototypes into real-world monitoring workflows. Dr. Block is involved in developing the 'Yarra Framework', an open-source toolbox for MRI research, and the 'mercure' platform for deploying image-analysis processing algorithms. His team actively supports the clinical integration of artificial intelligence (AI) to evaluate AI algorithms in realistic settings, ensuring these tools are practical and reliable. Significant advancements from his work include enhancing MRI reliability through self-running, free-breathing imaging techniques, which alleviate the need for breath-holding and increase patient comfort, particularly benefiting pediatric imaging. He has contributed to the FDA-approved StarVIBE technology, widely available in clinical MRI systems by Siemens Healthcare, as well as iterative reconstruction techniques.

Research Interests