Babylon has announced plans to invest US$100 million to create the world’s largest multi- disciplinary team dedicated to building next-generation, AI-powered healthcare technologies
Dr Ali Parsa, Babylon’s Founder and CEO said of today’s announcement: “We are currently witnessing what is arguably the fastest-ever period of technological and scientific innovation in history. So much that was never possible before, is now within our reach. We believe it is now possible to make most of the healthcare people need accessible and affordable, and put it in the hands of every person on Earth. Seventy years ago, the United Kingdom was the first country in the world to create a national health service. Today, we are going to double-down on our investment in Britain and create the technology that will make it possible for everyone around the world to have what the founders of NHS wanted for Britain.”
“Global healthcare providers are experiencing an acute shortage of physicians and nursing staff. The result is that sometimes those who are most in need – such as people with chronic conditions like mental health or diabetes – do not receive the consistent care they deserve. Artificial Intelligence has the potential to improve the capacity of our healthcare professionals to safely care for more patients, whilst allowing them to maintain meaningful patient-carer relationships as well as a more realistic work-life balance. Like our June 27th AI event at the Royal College of Physicians, where we demonstrated how, in the tests carried out, our AI is as accurate as a doctor, today’s announcement isn’t about replacing experienced medical personnel with new technology, but rather using AI to enable front-line healthcare staff to work more accurately, effectively and efficiently in delivering better quality health outcomes for ever-increasing numbers of patients around the world.”
“We see this $100 million self-funded investment in job creation and AI research and development as a strategic catalyst in helping to support and foster the necessary R&D eco-system for Britain to remain at the forefront of global AI innovation, both now and into the future.”
Rajesh Agrawal, Deputy Mayor for Business, also commented on Babylon’s announcement as follows: “London is already the Artificial Intelligence capital of Europe – at the cutting edge of technological and scientific innovation. I am delighted that Babylon is investing in the city – it is further proof that London is a flagship for medtech and health innovation and the ideal place to set up or expand a business.”
