Google Funds AI-Powered Digital Health Projects to Support UN Sustainable Development Goals

Google has announced its funding of 15 AI-powered projects as part of its commitment to advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The projects, which received $3 million in technical assistance, cash support, and Google Cloud credits each, aim to make a positive impact on various sectors. Out of the 15 projects, eight focus specifically on digital health initiatives.

One of the initiatives funded Google is RAD-AID, which provides AI-enabled platforms for triaging patients in low-resource hospitals. This platform helps interpret X-rays, scans, and test results, particularly concerning respiratory disease and breast cancer. Wuqu’ Kawoq and safe+natal are collaborating on a project to develop a machine learning-enabled toolkit for midwives in rural areas of Guatemala. The toolkit, which includes an ultrasound and blood pressure monitor connected to a smartphone, will enable the real-time detection of neonatal complications during delivery.

Google’s funding also supports the MATCH project, which aims to alleviate agitation in patients with dementia through the combination of music and wearable sensor technology. Similarly, the Makerere AI Lab will develop a 3D-printed adapter that uses AI to process images and aid in the diagnosis of illnesses such as tuberculosis, malaria, and cancer in low- and middle-income countries.

Another digital health project receiving Google’s support is the natural language-enabled question-answering service developed IDinsight and Reach Digital Health for expectant mothers in South Africa. The service provides answers to health inquiries and important health information. Similarly, Causal Foundry aims to develop a smartphone-based tool that utilizes machine learning to assist community health providers in Sub-Saharan Africa in managing patient information and behavior changes related to pregnancy and childbirth.

Jacaranda Health delivers an SMS-based digital health platform that supports expectant mothers in Sub-Saharan Africa. The platform provides behavioral nudges and includes a help desk powered natural language processing to triage patients and connect them to human agents. The funding from Google will be used to refine the machine learning model within the platform.

In addition to the healthcare projects, Google is also supporting The University of Surrey and Signapse in their use of generative AI to translate text in real time for deaf individuals in the U.S. and U.K. The project aims to provide photorealistic videos in sign language, making healthcare and other information more accessible.

Google’s commitment to advancing healthcare extends beyond funding initiatives. The company has developed its own machine learning technology, Med-PaLM 2, which uses a large language model to answer medical questions. Med-PaLM 2 has demonstrated expert-level performance in tests and has been made available to select Google Cloud customers for exploration and feedback.

Furthermore, Google has introduced an AI-enabled Claims Acceleration Suite to streamline the prior authorization and claims processing in health insurance. This suite converts unstructured data into structured data, facilitating more efficient healthcare operations.

With its investment in AI-powered digital health projects and its development of machine learning technologies, Google strives to make healthcare more accessible and improve the overall provider and patient experience.

Source: Original article