British digital health startup Babylon seeks more partners in China

Babylon, the British digital health startup, is looking for more partnerships in China, with the goal of improving healthcare solutions for local consumers.

"With our artificialintelligence-powered solutions, we hope to work with like-minded partners in China to improve the quality and accessibility of healthcare for China's 1.4 billion people, as part of the Healthy China 2030 agenda, and ultimately for citizens across the wider region," Ali Parsa, Babylon's CEO and founder, said.

It is a "prime time" for healthcare stakeholders to support the Chinese government's vision of improving access and quality of care to its citizens, Parsa told China Daily.

Founded in 2013, Babylon combines technology and medical expertise to bring doctors and people closer together. It aims to give people round-the-clock access to affordable – and often free - holistic healthcare services.

Globally, the London-based company has a total of 3.6 million users since its application was first launched in 2014, with a total of 1.5 million app downloads.

Babylon has been eyeing the China market, as the Asian country aims to further optimize national healthcare services through system reforms. In 2017, the government released the smart healthcare strategy to keep pace with AI technology by 2020, make major breakthroughs by 2025 and lead the world by 2030.

"As we expand our reach in Asia, we will form partnerships with key players in China's economy," Parsa said. "This will allow us to deepen our understanding of the diverse existing health needs in China and bridge any gap in China's primary care offering."

In 2018, Babylon signed a deal with Chinese internet giant Tencent to deploy health technology on the social platform WeChat.

The company will soon have "more exciting milestones" about its expansion into China next year, he said, without elaborating.

Asked about his take on the economic prospects, Parsa said the company is optimistic about China's growth potential in the short and long terms, despite uncertainties in the global economy.

So far, Babylon has partnered with 170 global partners, including the NHS, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Samsung, Telus and Prudential.