October 30, 2026

The Global Health Innovation Grants (GHIG) program focuses on fostering the growth and scale of health-focused innovations and social entrepreneurs in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) through one-year grants. Since 2016, IiH has worked with grantees to identify metrics that align with their project objectives and activities. Analyzing this data, IiH provides an assessment of the portfolio in each cohort, as well as over time, to identify areas for improvement for the program. This cohort of six innovators aimed at strengthening health systems in low- and middle-income countries by supporting organizations that use artificial intelligence (AI). It prioritized AI-driven solutions in community and primary care to improve the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of infectious diseases, oncology, antimicrobial resistance, and maternal and child health for underserved populations.

October 02, 2026

AI is attracting new attention—and significant new investments—across global health. That momentum creates real opportunity, but technology alone will not improve health outcomes. Introduced without trusted institutions, sound policy, usable evidence, sustainable financing, and the capacity to integrate new tools into existing services, AI can deepen fragmentation and widen disparities rather than solve them. The article argues that countries need more than funding for a growing menu of AI applications. They need durable, country-owned mechanisms to compare those tools with one another and with other health priorities, decide what to introduce and when, and determine how promising approaches can be financed and sustained. AI can strengthen public judgment by making evidence and tradeoffs more visible; it cannot replace the people and institutions accountable for making those choices.