Smart Funding, Smarter Diagnosis: South African AI Startup Advances TB Detection

Show Voice Options South Africa's healthcare innovation sector is gaining global attention as Cape Town-based med-tech company AI Diagnostics secures R85 million in new funding to expand its AI-powered tuberculosis screening technology, designed to improve early disease detection in underserved communities where access to specialist equipment remains limited. The startup's flagship product, the Ostium digital stethoscope, uses artificial intelligence to analyse lung sounds in real time and identify patterns linked to tuberculosis, allowing nurses, pharmacists, and community health workers to detect potential cases faster without relying on X-rays or specialist clinicians. The funding will support further clinical research, product validation, and expansion across South Africa and other high-burden regions in Africa and Asia, strengthening efforts to combat one of the country's deadliest infectious diseases. With South Africa carrying one of the world's highest TB burdens and many cases going undetected until advanced stages, experts say innovations like this could significantly reduce diagnostic delays, improve treatment outcomes, and reshape frontline healthcare by bringing faster, smarter screening tools directly to the point of care.