By: Eric Siegel, Founder, Predictive Analytics World
In anticipation of his upcoming conference presentation, Early Screening for Autism By 
Combining Question-Based and Video-Based Predictors at Predictive Analytics World for Business Chicago, June 19-22, 2017, we asked Halim Abbas, Vice President of Data Science at Cognoa, a few questions about his work in predictive analytics.
Q: In your work with predictive analytics, what behavior or outcome do your models predict?
A: Our models screen for autism and other developmental disorders among young children. Close to 300,000 users have completed the Cognoa questionnaire, and this data helps refine and improve our models.
Q: How does predictive analytics deliver value at your organization – what is one specific way in which it actively drives decisions or operations?
A: Predictive analytics power our clinically-validated developmental screening, giving parents peace of mind and enabling them to seek clinical diagnoses and behavioral therapies sooner.
Q: Can you describe a quantitative result, such as the predictive lift of your model or the ROI of an analytics initiative?
A: Our most recent clinical study shows a 100%+ lift in specificity over traditional autism screening methods.
Q: What surprising discovery or insight have you unearthed in your data?
A: We discovered that screening for autism in children younger than four is not only more attainable than previously thought, but even more accurate than with older children, provided that the right signals and behavioral clues are accounted for.
Q: Sneak preview: Please tell us a take-away that you will provide during your talk at Predictive Analytics World.
A: Predictive analytics on clinical datasets is much more feasible when inconclusive determination is allowed for the cases that are harder to discern using automated systems alone.
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Don't miss Halim’s conference presentation, Early Screening for Autism By Combining Question-Based and Video-Based Predictors, on Wednesday, June 21, 2017 from 11:40 am to 12:00 pm at Predictive Analytics World Chicago. Click here to register to attend.
By: Eric Siegel, Founder, Predictive Analytics World