Nigeria’s budding health-tech startup, Intron Health, has secured $1.6 million pre-seed funding to develop an AI-based solution for the clinical speech recognition of over 200 accents spoken in developing countries.
The funding stemmed from contributions from angel investors including Google, Clear Global, NYU, and Optum.
The health tech company operates one of Africa’s largest clinical speech datasets, with over 3.5 million audio clips across multiple specialties and domains, and 288 accents from over 29 countries.
Its data arsenal enables the solution to deliver real-time transcription of speech-to-text within hospital settings, helping healthcare providers to generate electronic medical records without hassle.
With this funding, Intron Health management plans to strengthen its research efforts, capacity, and distribution, according to a statement.
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Some of the funding will also expand a team of tech talent to support product development and market expansion, driving continuity and breaking further technological barriers.
Tobi Olatunji, founder and chief executive of Intron Health said he had experienced first-hand the difficulty of delivering quality healthcare amid an overwhelming patient load and lean resources when he worked as a doctor in Nigeria.
“We are excited about the adoption and growth we have seen over the past year, which shows we are addressing a significant need and providing an overdue solution to a critical problem in the global south. With the backing of prominent global investors who bring deep knowledge and expertise, we are looking forward to our next phase of growth,” Olatunji said.
Results from test runs indicate the solution has improved the efficiency of health outcomes and positively impacted hospital finances, the CEO added.
At the University College Hospital, Ibadan, the company improved the workload of healthcare practitioners, reducing radiology reporting turnaround time from 48 hours to just 20 minutes, according to Olatunji.
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