A couple who struggled for 18 years to conceive has finally achieved pregnancy through a groundbreaking artificial intelligence (AI) technology developed at Columbia University Fertility Center. This innovative approach, known as the STAR method, is revolutionizing the treatment of male infertility, particularly for those with azoospermia—a condition where no sperm are detectable in semen samples. The success of this technology offers hope to countless families facing similar challenges.
Azoospermia affects up to 10% of men with infertility, a condition that contributes to approximately 40% of infertility cases in the United States. For men with azoospermia, traditional methods of sperm detection often fail, as semen samples may contain only a handful of viable sperm, if any, amidst millions of other cells and debris. “What’s remarkable is that instead of the usual 200 million to 300 million sperm in a typical sample, these patients may have just two or three. Not 2 million or 3 million, literally two or three,” said Dr. Zev Williams, director of the Columbia University Fertility Center, in an interview with CNN. The STAR method, which combines AI with microfluidics and robotics, can scan millions of images from a semen sample cytospermia affects up to 10% of men with infertility, a condition that contributes to approximately 40% of infertility cases in the United States. For men with azoospermia, traditional methods of sperm detection often fail, as semen samples may contain only a handful of viable sperm, if any, amidst millions of other cells and debris. “What’s remarkable is that instead of the usual 200 million to 300 million sperm in a typical sample, these patients may have just two or three. Not 2 million or 3 million, literally two or three,” said Dr. Zev Williams, director of the Columbia University Fertility Center, in an interview with CNN. The STAR method, which combines AI with microfluidics and robotics, can scan millions of images from a semen sample in under an hour to identify these rare sperm cells that traditional microscopy might miss.
For the couple, who chose to remain anonymous to protect their privacy, the journey to parenthood was marked by repeated disappointments. After numerous unsuccessful in vitro fertilization (IVF) attempts, they turned to the Columbia University Fertility Center. The husband provided a semen sample, which was analyzed using the STAR system. The AI identified three viable sperm, which were then used to fertilize the wife’s eggs through IVF, resulting in a successful pregnancy—the first of its kind using this method. The baby is expected in December. “We kept our hopes to a minimum after so many disappointments,” the wife told CNN. “It took me two days to believe I was actually pregnant. I still wake up in the morning and can’t believe if this is true or not.”
The STAR method’s precision has opened new doors for fertility treatment. Unlike earlier AI applications in fertility care, which focused on assessing egg quality or selecting healthy embryos, this technology directly addresses male infertility by detecting and isolating sperm that would otherwise go unnoticed. The process is not only faster but also more accurate than manual searches, which can take hours or even days. In one test case, where embryologists searched a sample for two days without finding sperm, the STAR system identified 44 viable sperm in just one hour, according to Williams.
Currently, the STAR method is available only at Columbia University Fertility Center, but the team is eager to share their findings. “We want to publish our work and share it with other fertility centers,” Williams told CNN. The cost of using the STAR method to find, isolate, and freeze sperm is approximately $3,000, making it a relatively accessible option for many patients. This development builds on other AI advancements in fertility, such as a Canadian research team’s model that similarly accelerates sperm detection in azoospermic samples.
The broader implications of AI in fertility care are profound. As infertility remains a significant challenge—described by Williams as “an ancient part of the human experience”—the integration of cutting-edge technology offers new hope. Male infertility, often a silent and stigmatized issue, is gaining attention as AI tools like STAR provide solutions where few existed before. For couples like the one at Columbia, this technology has turned years of heartbreak into the promise of a growing family.