AI Software Update Boosts Image Quality and Workflow for Portable MRI System

Portable systems must therefore maintain image quality while simplifying scanning in these challenging environments. A newly cleared software update improves image quality across sequences, streamlines guided workflows, and adds foundational isotropic imaging for portable brain MRI.

Hyperfine’s latest Optive AI software update for the Swoop portable MRI system has received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The release marks the second FDA-cleared software package since the launch of the next-generation Swoop system in mid-2025 and is designed to enhance image quality, clinical utility, and ease of use across a range of care settings.

Unlike conventional high-field MRI systems, Swoop does not require dedicated electromagnetic shielding, allowing it to operate in environments such as intensive care units and emergency departments where background noise can complicate imaging. The new Optive AI release builds on the platform’s proprietary noise-cancellation technology across all sequences, producing clearer and more consistent images that move closer to high-field image quality at the point of care. The updated interface also introduces a guided scanning workflow and enables operators to view sequences and images as they are acquired, helping streamline bedside examinations.

The software additionally introduces an isotropic T1 sequence that supports three-dimensional visualization with thinner slices and uniform resolution across imaging planes. This capability can be particularly valuable in applications where spatial visualization supports clinical assessment, including post-operative tumor follow-up, and represents a new brain-imaging feature at the Swoop system’s ultra-low field strength. 

The Swoop Portable MR Imaging Systems are FDA-cleared for brain imaging in patients of all ages and are designed to provide head images when a full diagnostic MRI examination is not clinically practical. Hyperfine plans to begin rolling out the new software to existing and new Swoop users in the United States in September.

“This latest advancement reflects our commitment to frequent Optive AI software updates that continuously expand the clinical value of the Swoop system and provide our customers with access to the most advanced portable brain MRI technology available,” said Tom Teisseyre, Chief Operating Officer of Hyperfine.

“This software is designed to improve performance today and is also architected for our ultra-low-field future. Capabilities such as the new isotropic T1 sequence are particularly exciting because they demonstrate just how clinically valuable imaging at this field strength can be. We’ve also established a foundation for future potential applications such as neurosurgery contrast imaging and quantitative MRI, opening the door to additional sites of care for the Swoop system,” added Teisseyre.