Health institutions and technology companies across North America and Asia are prioritizing artificial intelligence and digital health infrastructure as pathways to expand access and improve clinical outcomes in underserved populations. From hospital systems piloting community-based screening to research networks combining genomic and AI-driven discovery, the pattern reflects a shared commitment to moving care beyond traditional settings and into neighborhoods where patients face the greatest barriers.
A $100,000 innovation award to Oben Health demonstrates how trusted community spaces can anchor preventive medicine. The company transforms barbershops and beauty salons into screening hubs for cardiovascular disease in medically underserved areas. By embedding AI-enabled health assessments into venues where patients already trust staff, Oben creates a direct pathway from screening to diagnosis and treatment without requiring patients to navigate unfamiliar healthcare settings.
Bridging Technology and Community Trust
The Kraft Center for Community Health at Mass General Brigham recognized Oben Health as the 2025 winner of its newly launched Kraft Prize, which targets innovations in cancer, cardiometabolic disease, maternal health, and substance use disorder. Applicants must demonstrate measurable impact on community health and show community engagement in development and implementation. Oben’s model stood out for combining technology, clinical care, and community trust into a scalable framework.
Malama Health received the inaugural Kraft Impact Acceleration Award and $50,000 in support for its maternal health platform. The mobile app integrates remote monitoring, care navigation, and doula support to expand access for pregnant women navigating care alone. The award recognizes both rapid growth and evidence of effectiveness in a population that has historically faced barriers to consistent prenatal and postpartum services.
Beyond individual prizes, both companies gain access to tailored support from Mass General Brigham’s Innovator Growth Division and invitations to the Mass General Brigham World Medical Innovation Forum in September 2026. These connections create a pathway for young digital health companies to scale evidence-based models within established health systems.
Scaling Digital Health Across Institutions
At the institutional level, AIIMS Jodhpur marked its 15th foundation day with a commitment to expand digital health capabilities and research infrastructure. The medical institute now conducts more than 14 lakh outpatient visits annually and performs advanced procedures including over 2,000 robotic surgeries and robotic renal transplantation.
Digital initiatives at AIIMS include e-Office, digital medical records, e-Sushrut Health Information System, ABHA-linked patient services, patient kiosks, and an Anaesthesia Information Management System. The institute has also launched a joint MedTech programme with IIT Jodhpur focused on artificial intelligence, digital health, medical technology, and entrepreneurship. During 2025-26, the institute received more than 115 crore rupees in extramural research grants and filed 31 patents, of which five were approved.
The institute’s expansion reflects the broader institutional strategy to combine technology with patient care and social responsibility. AIIMS Jodhpur now operates 45 departments, employs 221 faculty members, and serves more than 1,500 students. The integration of AI and robotic systems into clinical care alongside community health initiatives illustrates how large academic medical centers can leverage innovation to improve both clinical outcomes and research capacity.
Multi-Sector Collaboration on AI-Driven Health Data
In Canada, the Terry Fox Research Institute announced $40.9 million in combined funding across 14 pan-Canadian project teams focused on AI-driven health data sharing for precision medicine. Linearis Labs received funding for two projects: one applying AI to integrated genomic, proteomic, and metabolomic data to predict treatment efficacy in lung, breast, and colorectal cancers; and another using secure health data and AI to identify biomarkers in neurodegenerative disease.
Both projects leverage the DHDP’s federated learning infrastructure, which allows researchers to analyze data across institutions without moving it. This approach preserves privacy while enabling AI-driven discovery and creating new investment opportunities. The combination of multi-omics data, genomics, proteomics, and metabolomics, with AI reasoning offers a more complete biological picture than any single data type alone.
Building Regional Health Innovation Ecosystems
Maharashtra’s approach focuses on establishing a statewide platform to connect government agencies, healthcare providers, academic institutions, and innovators around shared health priorities. The Maharashtra Impact and Innovation Hub will examine artificial intelligence, digital health, health data, and precision health in real-world healthcare environments. A major focus is connecting the state’s extensive private healthcare ecosystem with public health priorities under the “Health for All” vision.
The platform is expected to test proposed interventions in real-world settings and generate evidence to inform decisions on whether and how successful approaches can be scaled. The initiative also explores opportunities for skilling, employment, and enterprise development linked to community health needs. Manyata, the Federation of Obstetrics & Gynaecological Societies of India’s quality-improvement initiative, already demonstrates how private healthcare facilities can strengthen maternal healthcare practices while complementing government efforts.
These converging efforts, community-based screening powered by AI, institutional digital infrastructure, multi-omics precision medicine, and regional innovation ecosystems, suggest that healthcare leaders view technology integration not as an end goal but as an enabler of access, equity, and evidence generation. The shift places community needs and local ownership at the center while building the data systems and research networks necessary to prove which innovations actually work for the populations they intend to serve.
