Baltimore, USA and Saskatoon, CANADA—Jhpiego, a global leader in health care solutions, and Viamo Inc., a trailblazer in mobile phone engagement in emerging markets, have announced a strategic partnership aimed at co-creating and scaling Generative AI-powered solutions over voice calls to improve health outcomes around the world. With a focus on strengthening accessibility, inclusiveness, and efficiency, Jhpiego and Viamo are taking a bold step to democratize access to care. They are reaching communities and health workers beyond the digital frontier and expanding access to timely, trusted health information while enhancing health workers skills.
Together, Jhpiego and Viamo will develop accessible solutions that are toll-free, without requiring smartphones, internet, or even literacy. This empowers people to take control of their health journeys while providing community health workers with real-time support and continuous learning.
“This partnership is a bold step in democratizing access to health information by combining Viamo’s voice-first GenAI technology with Jhpiego’s technical and programmatic health expertise,” said Debora Bossemeyer, Senior Vice President for Global Programs and Technical Excellence at Jhpiego. “Together, we are going beyond information delivery; we will strengthen self-care, support governments with real-time data, and reach offline populations often excluded from digital solutions. This will increase access with quality and efficiency.”
Together, the two organizations will co-develop prioritized Generative AI solutions, including a health provider assistant and community self-care and triage assistant. These tools will improve access to accurate health information and generate real-time, population-level insights - giving health systems and policymakers a social-listening-like window into emerging needs, trends, and challenges. The partnership will focus on key health areas such as HIV prevention, care and treatment, maternal and child health, primary health care, and community engagement across all emerging markets.
“AI dominates global conversation, yet practical applications for the nearly three billion people who remain offline are still rare. Together with Jhpiego, we’re laser-focused on harnessing AI responsibly to bridge the world’s widest and most persistent digital divides,” said Kellen Eilerts, Chief Partnerships Officer at Viamo. “With AI delivered over a simple voice call, even the most basic phones become a bridge to the sum of human knowledge, unlocking health, opportunity, and agency for the world’s most underserved populations.”
Leveraging an 11-year collaboration, Jhpiego and Viamo are now pioneering a Generative AI hotline in Mozambique. This innovative tool will provide critical, on-demand support to caregivers of Orphans and Vulnerable Children living with HIV, building on their long-standing work to strengthen health systems.
Viamo will leverage its extensive expertise in driving behavior change over voice calls, its existing Viamo Platform with 8 million monthly active users run in partnership with leading mobile network providers, and ongoing innovation in voice-first Generative AI to develop the technology to give communities agency with personalized advice at scale. Jhpiego will contribute its deep technical knowledge of health systems, relationships with Ministries of Health, and insights gleaned from field-level programmatic innovations to co-develop impactful content and policies.
Their partnership also commits to joint research, evidence generation, and shared learning initiatives to strengthen the effectiveness and scalability. Both organizations aim to leverage Generative AI to support approaches such as self- and family-led care, improving the timeliness and quality of diagnosis, treatment, and care.
About Jhpiego
Jhpiego is a global non-governmental organization active in approximately 37 countries, dedicated to creating and delivering transformative health care solutions that save lives. Partnering with national governments, health experts, and local communities, Jhpiego redesigns how and where care is delivered, prepares a future-ready workforce for a more equitable caregiving, and strengthens the care ecosystem.
About Viamo
Viamo is on a mission to make the world’s information accessible to the next billion people in Africa and Asia who rely on basic mobile phones and have limited or no access to the internet. By bridging mobile network operators, the development sector, and the private sector, Viamo reaches more than 27 million people through automated voice calls, interactive hotlines, and local-language engagement. The Viamo Platform (nationwide toll-free hotlines) delivers personalized, cost-effective solutions that connect individuals with vital information, products, and services - improving health, livelihoods, and opportunity at scale.
