Several projects are receiving up to $10,000 to pursue the use of AI to solve problems in global health and development.
Grand Challenges funds ideas from researchers and innovators closest to the problems — including teams building AI tools for clinics, farms, and classrooms in low- and middle-income countries.
Local innovation, global problems
The awards support early-stage work: better diagnostics, language tools, agricultural advice, and systems that help public programs reach more people. Grants of up to $10,000 give teams room to test, learn, and show whether a tool is worth scaling.
Why this approach matters
AI progress will not automatically reach the places with the greatest need. Funding local teams — and pairing them with governments and implementers — is how new tools get designed for real constraints instead of imported as afterthoughts.
Zameer Brey, Deputy Director of Technology Diffusion, notes that the point is not novelty for its own sake. It is whether a solution helps a health worker, teacher, or farmer do their job better.