GE HealthCare has been awarded a grant of over $44 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to create AI-enabled applications and tools that assist healthcare professionals in low- and middle-income countries with ultrasound scans for fetal and maternal health and respiratory diseases. The development will be led by Caption Health, an AI-enabled ultrasound guidance software company acquired by GE HealthCare.
The grant will support Caption Health in designing AI-powered ultrasound algorithms that can be implemented across multiple ultrasound devices and probes. These tools will offer clinical decision support, enabling healthcare providers to interpret obstetric and lung screening scans more efficiently, particularly in pediatric lung health and maternal and fetal care.
Roland Rott, president and CEO of ultrasound at GE HealthCare, expressed the importance of this grant in addressing the limitation of providing effective ultrasound care in low-resource environments: “This grant will help bring Caption Health’s leading AI technology customized to more users, and therefore contribute to increased access to higher-quality medical care.”
Earlier this year, Caption Health secured $53 million in Series B funding. In addition, they received FDA De Novo clearance for their cardiac ultrasound tool, which assists medical professionals in conducting diagnostic tests that typically require an ultrasound expert. Furthermore, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation granted $4.95 million to Caption Health in 2020 for the development of AI technology for lung ultrasound to aid in diagnosing pneumonia in low-resource settings.
GE HealthCare’s acquisition of Caption Health marks its second purchase since becoming an independent company. This move follows their acquisition of French company IMACTIS, which specializes in computed tomography (CT) interventional guidance technology.
Butterfly Network, a company known for its handheld, smartphone-connected ultrasound system, is another player in the ultrasound technology field. Their Auto B-line Counter, which utilizes AI, assists providers in determining abnormal lung function by measuring B-lines. In 2020, Butterfly was awarded a $5 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to expand access to its imaging technology in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Sources:
– GE Healthcare receives $44m grant to develop AI-enabled ultrasound apps in low-income countries -https://www.beckersasc.com/artificial-intelligence-ai/ge-healthcare-receives-44m-grant-to-develop-ai-enabled-ultrasound-apps-in-low-income-countries.html
– Caption Health raises $53 million for AI-guided ultrasound – https://www.medicaldesignandoutsourcing.com/caption-health-raises-53-million-for-ai-guided-ultrasound/
