CMS announced the start of the "Crushing Fraud Chili Cook-Off Competition" on Aug. 19, calling it "a market-based research challenge" to identify emerging technologies that can "detect anomalies and trends in Medicare Fee-for-Service (FFS) claims data that can be translated into novel indicators of fraud." The agency said it is "prioritizing the use of innovative, data-driven approaches, including explainable AI/ML" that can analyze large datasets to "uncover unusual patterns, anomalies, or trends that may signal fraudulent activity."