To develop and validate a novel, cost-effective prototype to reduce the time required for antimicrobial susceptibility test (AJT) evaluation. To realize this, the gold standard - disk diffusion - method and the laser speckle imaging technique will be combined, which will allow an early assessment of the diameter of the sterile zone. The proposed solution will significantly improve the effectiveness of antibacterial therapy for critically ill COVID-19 patients with bacterial infection and will contribute to the fight against the global problem - the growth of resistant bacterial strains. During the project, the proposed prototype device and AI-based algorithm will be tested in real-world conditions and tested in routine microbiology tests on various bacterial isolates and antimicrobial agents. The project team consists of biophotonics, electronics, information technology and microbiology experts, young scientists, master's and doctoral students from LU, RTU and experienced doctors from Paula Stradins Clinical University Hospital.