May 1, 2024—Quest Diagnostics and PathAI announced a multifaceted collaboration designed to accelerate the adoption of digital and AI pathology innovations. Under the terms of the definitive agreement, Quest will acquire select assets of PathAI Diagnostics, which provides anatomic and digital pathology laboratory services. At closing, PathAI Diagnostics’ digitized laboratory in Memphis, Tenn., will become Quest’s AI and digital R&D and solutions center, supporting Quest’s specialty pathology businesses AmeriPath and Dermpath Diagnostics. PathAI will continue to support its biopharmaceutical clients with end-to-end clinical trial services capabilities at its biopharma lab, which is separate from the diagnostic laboratory business. The transaction is expected to be completed in the second quarter of this year.
“This transaction will enable Quest to dramatically ramp our capabilities in AI and digital pathology, building on our leadership in oncology and subspecialized pathology services,” Kristie Dolan, SVP of oncology at Quest, said in a joint press release. “Digital pathology will strengthen our ability to offer flexible solutions that fulfill the needs of today’s hospital laboratories. For instance, many hospital labs are facing a shortage of histotechs. With digital pathology, these labs can refer slide preparation to us while continuing to perform professional interpretation in-house. Digital pathology will also allow us to extend the interpretative expertise of our roughly 400 pathologists to hospitals and other labs who lack these skilled professionals on staff, regardless of location.”
Under separate agreements, Quest will license PathAI’s AISight digital pathology image management system to support its pathology laboratories and customer sites in the United States. The two entities may also pursue opportunities for Quest to aid PathAI’s algorithm product development. In addition, Quest will be a preferred provider for PathAI’s biopharmaceutical clinical laboratory services.