AI Revolutionizes Diagnostics: Nexus AI Deploys X-Ray Screening in Underserved Areas

Sub-Saharan Africa faces a critical shortage of radiologists, with fewer than one specialist available for every 300,000 to 500,000 people, starkly contrasting the international guideline of 100-120 radiologists per million. Nigeria, with over 230 million people, has under 700 consultant radiologists, meaning one specialist could serve over 300,000. Furthermore, existing specialists and imaging facilities are heavily concentrated in major cities, leading to delays in X-ray interpretation even when patients manage to access imaging services. This significant gap in healthcare access and efficiency is precisely what Nexus AI, a South African company, aims to address.

Nexus AI has developed an innovative AI-powered medical imaging tool designed to analyze chest X-rays and flag potential abnormalities within approximately 45 seconds. A key feature of this technology is its ability to operate effectively in environments where essential infrastructure, such as reliable internet and electricity, is often limited or non-existent, making it suitable for rural and underserved areas across Africa.

The genesis of Nexus AI traces back to 2013, when co-founders Gerhard Ferreira, a medical doctor, and Andries Vorster, an electronic engineer, embarked on primary healthcare initiatives across Africa through their company, LTE Medical Solutions. Their work, which included mobile X-ray clinics in Mozambique and collaborations with organizations like the Global Fund, exposed them to the challenges of healthcare delivery in remote communities. They observed issues such as errors, duplication, and monitoring difficulties with existing spreadsheet-based systems. To overcome these, they developed Healthcare Framework, a clinical management software platform that digitized these processes and is now utilized in about 20 African countries, having processed over five million consultations.

Despite the success of Healthcare Framework in screening and identifying abnormalities, a bottleneck persisted: patients were not always effectively connected to the follow-up care they required. Recognizing this, Nexus AI was established in 2021 as a subsidiary of Healthcare Framework. The company began integrating its hardware and clinical management platform with various AI vendors to streamline lung health screening. The core idea was to leverage AI to pre-analyze X-rays, identifying and prioritizing images that demanded a radiologist's attention, thereby accelerating the diagnostic process, particularly for conditions like tuberculosis (TB).

It is crucial to note that Nexus AI's technology does not replace radiologists. Classified as a Class IIb medical device, it serves as an assistant tool, empowering healthcare workers and radiologists to more swiftly identify and prioritize potentially abnormal cases. The design philosophy of Nexus AI prioritizes resilience to infrastructure challenges. The system is engineered to run on edge devices, such as laptop computers, without requiring internet connectivity. It can also be deployed alongside ultra-portable, battery-powered X-ray machines, enabling its use in extremely remote and challenging locations, including mountainous regions in Lesotho and even four kilometers underground in a mine, as demonstrated by the company. Beyond technology, Nexus also collaborates with clinics and district coordinators to ensure identified patients receive necessary follow-up care.

In 2023, Nexus AI forged a significant partnership with Google, signing a master license and development agreement. This collaboration granted Nexus access to Google’s foundational AI models and development support, enabling them to build comprehensive systems, including user interfaces, DICOM management, and other tools essential for a medical product. The partnership also facilitates exploration of a multimodal approach to medical diagnosis, combining visual information from X-rays with patient clinical data. Google's involvement underscores its commitment to applying frontier AI models for societal impact, particularly in developing markets, by adapting global technology to local healthcare conditions.

Data privacy and security are paramount for Nexus AI. The company adheres to the ISO 13485 quality management system, implementing stringent cybersecurity and data policies. They offer in-country data hosting options, such as for Nigeria, and incorporate de-identification mechanisms to protect patient privacy by removing personal information from medical images during processing.

Nexus AI is currently operational in more than six African countries, including Côte d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone, South Africa, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Globally, it has been deployed across approximately 50 sites, screening over 50,000 patients. Its international rollout gained significant momentum after receiving CE Class IIb certification in December 2025. This certification followed an independent evaluation by the Stop TB Partnership, published in The Lancet Digital Health in September 2024, which ranked Nexus among the top two performing AI models for TB screening, alongside Lunit. This recognition has opened doors to procurement channels used by major organizations like the Global Fund and the Stop TB Partnership.

Uniquely, Nexus AI has self-funded its development, commercialization, and regulatory certification, foregoing venture capital. The founders view this as a strategic advantage, allowing greater flexibility in maintaining sustainable pricing, especially in markets with limited healthcare budgets. The company is also dedicated to social impact, committing to over 10,000 free screenings annually, a target it exceeded with over 15,000 screenings in 2026.

Looking ahead, Nexus AI is expanding beyond donor-funded healthcare programs, engaging with mining companies for diseases like silicosis, ministries of health, and private healthcare providers. It is also testing its technology with private radiology practices to serve as an additional tool for radiologists. While tuberculosis is a current focus, the technology is being developed for a broader healthcare market, with plans to integrate with existing hospital and radiology systems and expand into various other healthcare applications. International expansion is already underway, with projects and proposals in countries such as Vietnam, Cameroon, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, and Peru. However, Africa remains central to Nexus AI's mission. By building healthcare technology tailored for African conditions, the company ensures its solutions are robust and practical for real-world deployment, striving to make specialist healthcare more accessible in regions where specialists, infrastructure, and funding are profoundly limited.