The medical field’s lofty dreams of unleashing the power of artificial intelligence have set off a race to rework the way health-care specialists make use of their data.

Although technology exists to make AI a potent tool, there is a snag. Data relevant to answering specific questions often reside in various locations, from hospitals to diagnostic labs to pharmaceutical companies. These information silos are typical in the health-care field, leaving scientists and other medical professionals at a disadvantage to harness the...