Helium Health Gets $2.5m from Google for Clinical AI in Maternal Care

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

About $2.5 million (approximately N3.4 billion) has been given to Helium Health for the deployment of clinical artificial intelligence (AI) in primary maternal healthcare in Nigeria.

The funding package came from Google.org, with the clinical AI to be deployed in Lagos, Delta, Oyo, and Kano States, with Lagos as the primary operational launchpad, aligning with its push to modernise primary healthcare delivery and digital innovation.

The Nigerian health tech startup is among the global recipients in the $30 million Google.org Impact Challenge: AI for Government Innovation, which supports organisations partnering with governments to improve public services.

Commenting on the development, the chief executive of Helium Health, Mr Dimeji Sofowora, said, “For the past decade, Helium Health has been building the technology and partnerships needed to improve healthcare delivery across Africa.

“Through our maternal health initiatives, we’ve already reached over 3.5 million women, and Google.org’s support gives us an opportunity to build on that foundation, scale what works, and reach even more women with quality maternal healthcare.”

Also speaking, the Head of Public Health at Helium Health, Shona Oluwatola, said, “Nigeria accounts for nearly three in every 10 maternal deaths globally. Behind every maternal death is a woman whose family expected her to come home.

“Our goal is to reach an additional 1.9 million women over three years and contribute to a 30 per cent reduction in maternal mortality.

“Ultimately, we want to ensure that no woman loses her life simply because she didn’t know she was at risk or couldn’t access the care she needed.”

The Global Head of Google.org, Maggie Johnson, noted that, “AI holds incredible potential to transform public services, but there is often a gap between promise and practice.

“By equipping the 15 selected organisations with funding and pro bono support from Google’s own AI experts, we are empowering the people closest to the problem to show what is truly possible. Together, we can ensure that AI makes a profound, positive difference in the everyday lives of communities worldwide.”

With this support, HeliumMum is leveraging AI to help pregnant women identify pregnancy risks early and access appropriate care, seamlessly connecting them with healthcare providers equipped with electronic medical records and AI-powered clinical decision support to deliver quality maternal healthcare, while giving governments actionable data to strengthen maternal health services and improve outcomes.