UK Research and Innovation is providing up to £80 million ($105.48 million) to trial nine technologies aimed at improving dementia diagnosis and reducing waiting times that can exceed a year. The National Health Service will test faster brain scans, blood tests, a 15-minute remote cognitive assessment, artificial intelligence to forecast disease progression, digital memory-monitoring tools and home sensors that could help doctors intervene earlier. The programme targets diagnosis for 92% of patients within 18 weeks of referral, compared with about 60% currently. One project seeks to reduce MRI scans from around 20 minutes to about seven, enabling more scans at lower cost. Only technologies that show benefits in NHS testing will receive further funding under UKRI’s so-called fail-fast approach, which is intended to speed the adoption of effective tools. Minister of State for Health Karin Smyth said dementia had been neglected for too long. UKRI Health Mission Challenge Director Andy Hill said dementia accounted for almost one in eight deaths in the United Kingdom, with more than 72,000 people across the UK dying from dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, last year.