Healthtech startup Zini.ai raises Pre Series A funding from Solarus Group at a valuation of 101 crores
Bangalore : Zini.ai, an AI-powered multilingual virtual physician, a flagship product by Delhi-based Grainpad Pvt Ltd, has raised Pre Series A funding from Solarus Group, a London based Venture Capital & Private Equity firm with presence in England, Egypt and India. The funds will be used towards enhancing existing technology, new business development and expanding into new geographies.
Zini.ai is India’s first AI-powered, voice based virtual physician designed by a team of experienced doctors and techies. Founded by Dr. Rohit Sharma in 2017, Zini provides genuine expert medical guidance and directs patients to seek timely medical help. Accessible through an app, Zini allows users to ‘Talk to Zini’ about any medical symptom or health issues. With an Alexa-like experience, the app can evaluate 950+ health symptoms, 300+ diseases, provide a detailed report, recommend the best course of action and share details of nearby medical facilities that a patient can reach out to.
Commenting on the fundraise, Dr Rohit Sharma, CEO and Founder, Zini.ai, said, “We started Zini with an aim to make expert medical advice accessible to everyone and to bridge the gap in doctor-patient ratio in India. Over the last three years, our conversational AI-powered multilingual virtual physician ‘Zini’ has received an overwhelming response from hospitals, our customers and the medical fraternity. We are pleased with the further validation of our product and business model from our investors. The new investment will accelerate our next phase of growth and enable us to strengthen our existing technology.”
Tamer Soliman, CEO and Director, Solarus Group, said “We are excited to be investing in Zini.ai. The team has shown great commitment over the last several years in building a product that is solving a real world problem. Zini’s ability to discuss symptoms, diagnose accurately and recommend the best course of action has the potential to help every player involved in the healthcare sector, from patients to healthcare professionals. We believe that the startup is solving a large unmet need in the market and it has the potential to become a defining brand in the category it operates in. We are happy to be a part of their growth story.”
As per a recent report, the current doctor-patient ratio currently stands at 1:1445, which is lower than the WHO recommendation of 1:1000. In government hospitals, there is 1 doctor for every 10,000 patients. There are PHCs with no doctors at all. Additionally, in rural areas, there are many practitioners who do not have the required medical license and degree to practice medicine.
In spite of this, millions of patients continue to visit them due to the lack of access to qualified medical professionals. Existing technologies like Telemedicine do not solve the problem of poor doctor patient ratio. They only shift the existing ratio from offline to online.
The lack of genuine medical advice at the right time can be detrimental for a patient. A virtual physician like Zini can address the gap in doctor-patient ratio in India. Furthermore, Zini can also help gather structured data, which can promote research and help policymakers make data driven decisions about their communities.
Zini has been trained on medical data very specific to the Indian population. Over the last few years, Zini’s medical team of 10+ doctors has curated a database of symptoms, the reasons behind them, and the possible course of action for the symptoms. Available on Android, a user can download the app and start using Zini as their personal health guide. With ‘open conversational abilities’, Zini allows users to ‘talk to ZINI’ in natural language or as a free text-based chat. Each user gets a Unique Global Health ID where all the relevant information about the patient gets recorded.
Zini currently works with 5 hospitals, 10+ Telehealth platforms, and has 15,000+ Android users, thus validating its use case in an array of market segments.
In August 2021, Zini.ai was selected for the Startup Punjab seed grant award from a cohort of 15 startups that were further shortlisted from more than 150 companies from across the country. In March 2021, Zini won a grant of Rs 25 Lakhs under the Startup India – NGIS (Next Generation Incubation Scheme) started by the STPI( Software Technology Park of India).