Helium Health secures $2.5 million Google.org grant

LAGOS, Nigeria — Nigerian health technology company Helium Health has secured a $2.5 million grant, about ₦3.4 billion, from Google.org to deploy artificial intelligence tools for maternal healthcare in Nigeria.

The grant will fund the rollout of clinical artificial intelligence models through Helium Health’s maternal health initiative, HeliumMum, across Lagos, Delta, Kano and Oyo states. Lagos will serve as the main launch point.

Google announced on Wednesday, November 4, 2026, that Helium Health was the only Nigerian organisation selected among 15 global recipients of the $30 million Google.org Impact Challenge: AI for Government Innovation. The programme supports organisations working with governments to improve public services. Helium Health will also join a Google.org Accelerator programme, which provides technical support from Google’s engineers and artificial intelligence product specialists.

The Nigerian implementation plan was presented in Lagos at an executive briefing with Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, led by executives from Google and Helium Health.

Helium Health says the initiative aims to reach an additional 1.9 million women over three years and contribute to a 30% reduction in maternal deaths. The company says it has already reached more than 3.5 million women through its maternal health programmes over the past decade. Dimeji Sofowora, Chief Executive Officer of Helium Health, said the funding would allow the company to scale those interventions and widen access to quality care.

Dr Shona Oluwatola, Head of Public Health at Helium Health, said Nigeria accounts for nearly three in every ten maternal deaths worldwide. She said the company hopes to help cut maternal deaths by identifying pregnancy risks early and linking women to appropriate medical care.

Through HeliumMum, the company plans to deploy tools that help pregnant women identify possible complications early and connect them with healthcare providers. The platform will link patients to facilities that use electronic medical records and clinical decision support systems, which help health workers make more informed decisions. It will also give governments data to identify gaps in maternal health services.

Maggie Johnson, Global Head of Google.org, said the selected organisations would receive funding and pro bono support from Google’s artificial intelligence experts.

The grant follows Google’s selection of four Nigerian startups for the tenth cohort of its Google for Startups Accelerator Africa in April 2026. The startups were Bani, MasteryHive AI, Regxta and Termii, all building artificial intelligence-based products for financial services and business operations.