Although Midjourney is known for its artificial intelligence platform that produces images from text commands, the company is now turning to a very different field. The company announced the system called “Scanner”, the first hardware product developed under the name Midjourney Medical. Designed for full body imaging, the device aims to create a three-dimensional map of the human body in approximately 60 seconds using ultrasound technology. Not content with this, Midjourney announced that it plans to open special centers where the devices will be used. The first facility is expected to become operational in San Francisco next year.
In the statement published by the company, it is acknowledged that this initiative is quite different from its current areas of activity. Midjourney states that it has recently made evaluations about what kind of identity the company should adopt in the future, and as a result of this process, it has turned to the field of health technologies. According to the company’s statement, the goal is to make the process much faster and more accessible while approaching the level of detail offered by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems. Therefore, Scanner is positioned as the first product of the Midjourney Medical brand.
The scanning process has a different structure than conventional imaging systems. After the user climbs onto a platform, he is lowered into the water in a controlled manner. The body passes through a ring-shaped system consisting of approximately half a million squares the size of a grain of sand. Each of these frames can send ultrasound waves and record the returning signals. Midjourney likens the system to the echolocation method used by bats and dolphins. Thanks to the data obtained, a three-dimensional model of the body with sub-millimeter detail can be created.
Midjourney Scanner aims to be an alternative to MRI systems
According to the information provided by the company, the images created by the Scanner will present a view similar to the MRI results used today. On the other hand, the processing time is aimed to be much shorter. While traditional full-body MRI scans can take between 60 and 90 minutes in most cases, Midjourney aims to reduce that time to under a minute. Thus, it is planned to apply the imaging process more frequently and expand early diagnosis opportunities.
Butterfly Network, known for its portable ultrasound devices, is also involved in the development of the technology. Under the licensing agreement signed between the two companies in November 2025, Midjourney obtained exclusive rights to use Butterfly Network’s chip-based ultrasound technology, which it calls “ultrasound-on-chip”. This technology allows larger and complex components used in traditional ultrasound systems to be presented in a more compact structure.
The project is led by Midjourney’s consumer hardware projects manager, Ahmad Abbas. Abbas joined Midjourney from Apple in late 2023. He is known as one of the names that contributed to the development of the Vision Pro mixed reality headset during his work at Apple. This history shows that the company has ambitious goals not only in software but also in advanced hardware systems.
Over the next 12 months, Midjourney will continue to improve scanning algorithms, continue research efforts, and work on second-generation device design. In addition, the system must receive the necessary approvals from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for diagnostic use. The company plans to operate in more cities by 2028 and introduce the third-generation system powered by specially designed chips. This version is expected to bring significant improvements in image quality.
Midjourney’s long-term goal is to make 50 thousand Scanner devices available worldwide by 2031. The company argues that widespread and rapid imaging technologies could increase early detection rates and reduce the financial burden on healthcare systems. However, the clinical accuracy, diagnostic success and performance of the device against existing MRI systems will only become clear after extensive testing and regulatory processes are completed. At this stage, Scanner stands out as one of the most remarkable initiatives of a company known in the field of artificial intelligence towards health technologies.