Analysis published in The Lancet Digital Health shows around 15,000 patients directly benefitted from having their scans reviewed by the tech.

Dr David Hargroves, NHS national clinical director for stroke and co-author of the study said: ‘This landmark study confirms what we have already been seeing in daily practice: that stroke AI imaging is helping us deliver faster decision-making and better care for our patients.

‘This technology supports clinicians to make rapid treatment decisions, which means more patients can receive life- and disability-saving treatments in time - giving them a better chance of returning to independent living.

‘This publication provides robust, real-world evidence of the impact of AI in stroke care and shows why the NHS moved quickly to roll this technology out nationwide.'

The AI tool — now rolled out by the NHS to a network of over 70 hospitals — helps doctors spot deadly clots in minutes.

It means patients are more likely to be able to get a thrombectomy - a minimally invasive clot-removing procedure – faster, doubling their chances of regaining independence after a major stroke.