Qure.ai secures Gates Foundation grant to accelerate AI tools for TB and pneumonia diagnosis

What happened: Health-tech company Qure.ai has received a new grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to advance AI-powered diagnostic tools.

• Why it matters now: TB and pneumonia remain among the world’s deadliest infectious diseases, especially in low-resource regions.

• What changes for people: The funding will help develop AI-driven point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) tools and open datasets that improve early and affordable diagnosis.

• Who is affected: Patients in high-burden countries, frontline healthcare workers, and public health systems.

Qure.ai, a leading Indian AI healthcare company, has secured a fresh grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation aimed at boosting global diagnostic capabilities for tuberculosis (TB) and pneumonia. The funding is expected to fast-track the development of AI-assisted ultrasound tools, enabling healthcare workers to detect life-threatening infections more quickly and cost-effectively.

Why this grant is significant

TB and pneumonia are among the top contributors to infectious-disease deaths worldwide. Many regions, especially rural and underserved areas, lack access to X-ray machines or specialist radiologists. AI-driven point-of-care ultrasound technology offers a portable, low-cost alternative that community health workers can operate with minimal training.

Foundation officials said the grant is intended to support scalable, frontline-ready AI models that can perform reliably even in low-infrastructure settings.

What Qure.ai will develop next

With the new funding, Qure.ai will focus on building:

• Advanced AI models for POCUS to detect early signs of TB and pneumonia

• Open datasets that global researchers and governments can use to improve diagnostic accuracy

• Integrated clinical workflows to help frontline workers make quicker treatment decisions

The company will also collaborate with public health agencies and global research partners to validate the tools across different geographies.

Global health impact

Experts say AI-powered ultrasound could transform infectious disease care by enabling rapid screening in remote areas, reducing diagnostic delays and supporting more targeted treatment. Governments in Africa and South Asia are expected to be major beneficiaries as TB remains a major public health challenge.