• SpinSci Health Tech India, a US-based digital healthcare solutions company, plans to hire 1,000 skilled AI professionals for its development centre in Hyderabad.
• Ciana Health, a healthcare startup, launched a face-reading app based on artificial intelligence (AI) that can provide your key health parameters within seconds.
• Vigocare and Monitra, two Hyderabad-based healthcare startups, launched adhesive patches that monitor cardiac vitals and share them with doctors in real time.
• A senior endocrinologist works on a ‘digital twin’ for diabetics to help maintain sugar levels. His study, published in Nature, has generated interest in the medical community.
• Jivi ai, a year-old large language model, has developed a chatbot that can help both doctors and patients streamline consultations and other medical services.
AI in healthcare is no longer science fiction, or a pipe dream. It has arrived. There are AI-led healthcare solutions across specialities and devices. But it’s a pathway to be tread with caution, as unscrupulous elements also sharpen their AI skills.
AI helps in understanding and managing chronic conditions like diabetes, for example, explains Dr Ravi Sankar Erukulapati, a senior endocrinologist at Apollo Hospitals. His ‘digital twin’ project for diabetics showed significant improvements in those participating in the study.
The ‘digital twin’ AI model combines data from a continuous glucose monitor (CGM), activity trackers, and a food logging app to predict individual blood sugar responses to food and activity. It provides personalised recommendations for diet, exercise, and stress management techniques like deep breathing. Nearly 60.3 per cent (1,117) of the participants achieved the recommended HbA1c level — below 7 per cent — without medication.
Stumbling block
Alongside the benefits of AI deployment in healthcare, challenges emerge too. A key stumbling block to innovation in healthcare, say industry insiders, is the scarcity of data needed to understand disease patterns and health conditions to train machines. Given the unorganised nature of the healthcare sector, startups face an uphill task in building products and solutions, they say.
Seeing the torrent of new ideas from startups, the Telangana government has decided to give startups hospital access to build proof-of-concept for their ideas. “Getting data is a difficult task for healthcare startups. So, we have decided to give them access to specific health verticals that they want to work on,” says Jayesh Ranjan, Telangana’s Special Chief Secretary (IT and Industries).
These measures, however, come with certain concerns, including privacy, since healthcare data and infrastructure is sensitive.
Cyber targets
According to a Check Point Software Technologies report, the Indian healthcare sector is experiencing an alarming rise in cyber threats, with 8,614 attacks per organisation per week. The rapid shift to electronic health records, telemedicine, and AI-driven diagnostics has expanded attack surfaces, yet many institutions remain underprepared.
Aaron Bugal, Field Chief Technology Officer (Asia-Pacific and Japan) of cybersecurity solutions company Sophos, says there’s an immediate risk to many healthcare organisations as cybercriminals increasingly target them, and with success.
“Although Gen AI is helping write better phishing lures without spelling mistakes and poor grammar, major security incidents within healthcare are typical of poorly configured and maintained systems. The lack of multi-factor authentication and sporadic patching of operating systems and applications are prime examples of how cybercriminals get in — no Gen AI required!” he says. “This isn’t attributed to the rise of generative AI — rather, cybercriminals are still on the fence over whether Gen AI will help or hinder them,” he adds.
Sundar Balasubramanian, Managing Director for India and South Asia at Check Point Software Technologies, says AI is crucial in enhancing cyber security in the healthcare sector. “One of the most concerning threats is AI-powered ransomware, which automates large-scale attacks, bypasses traditional defences, and encrypts hospital networks within minutes. Beyond system paralysis, cybercriminals steal and monetise sensitive patient data, often using it for extortion,” he says.
To mitigate these evolving threats and safeguard medical infrastructure and patient trust, he advises healthcare institutions to move beyond traditional cybersecurity models towards a multi-layered, AI-powered defence strategy, backed by regulatory compliance and continuous security training.