Helium Health has secured funding from Google.org to deploy artificial intelligence models across primary maternal healthcare services in Nigeria, targeting 1.9 million additional women over three years.
The Nigerian health technology company was selected as one of 15 global recipients of the $30 million Google.org Impact Challenge: AI for Government Innovation, which supports organizations using artificial intelligence to improve public services in partnership with governments.
The funding will support the expansion of HeliumMum, Helium Health’s maternal healthcare initiative, which uses AI to help identify pregnancy risks early, connect women to appropriate care and equip healthcare providers with clinical decision-support tools.
The initiative will initially focus on Lagos, Delta, Kano and Oyo states, with Lagos serving as the primary operational launchpad.
The Nigerian implementation roadmap was presented during an executive briefing in Lagos attended by Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and executives from Google and Helium Health. The programme is intended to support state governments in strengthening primary healthcare delivery through digital tools and better access to maternal health information.
Under the three-year programme, Helium Health plans to introduce AI-powered clinical decision-support tools in 150 healthcare facilities, onboard 300,000 women and reach 1.9 million women with maternal health education. The company also aims to contribute to a 30% reduction in facility-based maternal mortality and cut the time governments take to identify and respond to emerging health trends by 35%. LinkedIn+1
HeliumMum connects pregnant women to healthcare providers equipped with electronic medical records and AI-powered clinical decision-support systems. The technology is designed to help identify potential pregnancy complications earlier, facilitate referrals and support healthcare workers in making informed clinical decisions.
The platform will also provide government health agencies with data and insights to identify gaps in maternal healthcare delivery, monitor emerging health trends and improve the allocation of healthcare resources.
Helium Health Chief Executive Officer Dimeji Sofowora said the company had already reached more than 3.5 million women through its maternal health initiatives over the past decade.
Google.org’s funding will allow the company to expand those programmes and extend access to maternal healthcare services to more women.
“Nigeria accounts for nearly three in every ten maternal deaths globally,” said Dr Shona Oluwatola, Head of Public Health at Helium Health. She said the company hopes to reach an additional 1.9 million women over three years and contribute to a 30% reduction in maternal mortality.
Maggie Johnson, Global Head of Google.org, said the initiative would combine financial support with technical expertise from Google engineers and AI product specialists to help participating organisations translate AI innovation into practical public services.
Helium Health will participate in a dedicated Google.org Accelerator, receiving pro bono engineering support, technical guidance and assistance from Google’s AI product experts. The accelerator is designed to help the 15 selected organisations develop and scale AI-powered solutions in partnership with governments. blog.google+1
The Google.org Impact Challenge: AI for Government Innovation is a $30 million global initiative supporting organisations applying artificial intelligence to public-sector challenges across healthcare, economic development and resilience.
For Helium Health, the funding adds to its efforts to digitise healthcare delivery across Africa, where limited access to medical infrastructure, fragmented patient records and shortages of healthcare professionals continue to challenge health systems.
The success of the Nigerian deployment will depend on the adoption of the technology by healthcare facilities, integration with existing public health systems and the ability of frontline healthcare workers to use AI-assisted tools effectively. HeliumMum‘s grant ffom Google.org is reportedly $2.5 million according to people familiar with the matter.
