Google and NHG Health Launch AI Health Coach

SINGAPORE - In a significant advancement for preventive healthcare, Google has announced a collaboration with NHG Health to develop an AI-powered health coach. This innovative approach is designed to offer users tailored lifestyle advice and reminders for preventive care.

Health Coach via WhatsApp

The AI health coach will be accessible through NHG Healthbot, a chatbot that users can interact with on WhatsApp. Utilizing Google’s extensive services, including Google Maps, it will provide recommendations on healthier meal options and local exercise locations.

This announcement was made during the first-ever Google for Health Summit, held at Google’s Mapletree Business City office on October 29.

Initial Rollout and Target Group

The service will begin with a test group of select users in the first quarter of 2027, as part of a nine-month pilot study. Ong Jing Fang, the chief operating officer of population health at NHG Health, indicated that this group will focus on individuals eligible for Healthier SG who have not yet participated in screenings under the national preventive health initiative.

This pilot aims to motivate participants to undergo health screenings and to better understand their motivations for not participating in the initiative. The group will include older adults, with the health coach also offering virtual frailty assessments and guidance on nutrition and physical activity to prevent frailty.

Multilingual and Interactive Features

The health coach will be available in Singapore's four official languages, and users will have the capability to interact through voice messages, making it accessible for a wider audience.

Initially, the number of users could range in the thousands, with participants gradually introduced neighborhood by neighborhood. If successful, NHG Health plans to expand the service beyond its current reach in northern and central Singapore.

Ambitions for Nationwide Expansion

Ong highlighted the ambition of making this health coach a nationwide resource, potentially integrating it with Singapore’s national digital healthcare platform, HealthHub. The underlying technology will leverage insights from a predictive model that combines NHG Health’s health database with Google’s data on environmental and behavioral trends.

This model aims to identify health risks such as chronic diseases and frailty at the population level, thereby enhancing Singapore's preventive health measures using AI.

Supporting Health Innovations

At the summit, Senior Minister of State for Digital Development and Information, Tan Kiat How, emphasized the potential of this partnership to build a proactive health system, capable of addressing issues before they escalate into major health crises. He stated, "It will explore whether predictive insights can identify health risks earlier, and whether an AI-enabled health coach can provide more personalized preventive guidance while directing clinically sensitive or urgent issues towards appropriate care channels."

Joe Sim, the group CEO of NHG Health, expressed enthusiasm for the initiative, stating that it could significantly enhance preventive healthcare efforts by personalizing healthcare interactions.

Google's Singapore country managing director, Ben King, noted the potential of AI technology in addressing complex societal issues, particularly in the healthcare sector, especially in light of the country's aging population.

Research and Community Engagement Initiatives

The summit also unveiled a range of initiatives following the National AI Partnership established between Google and the Government in May. Google Research plans to establish a research hub in Singapore, focusing on improving foundational AI efficiency and collaborating with institutions such as the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University.

Furthermore, Google is scaling up its health research projects, including introducing MedGemma, a specialized AI model aimed at frontline healthcare settings. Additionally, Google DeepMind is advancing its research on AI-enhanced clinical support tools in partnership with the National University Health System.

Google is also launching a new online program, the Google AI for Healthcare Professionals Certificate, to help healthcare workers leverage AI in their administrative tasks and continuous professional development. The company is contributing $7 million to the Philanthropy Asia Alliance’s Health for Human Potential Coalition, targeting infectious diseases and preventable deaths across Southeast Asia, with a portion directed towards combating emerging disease threats.