Remidio Innovative Solutions has secured a grant from the Gates Foundation to advance its Oculomics platform for maternal health applications in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The platform combines retinal imaging and artificial intelligence (AI) to detect indicators of systemic diseases and will now focus on improving early risk assessment for major pregnancy complications, including pre-eclampsia (PE), anemia, and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM).
The initiative will be implemented across Africa and India, regions that account for a significant share of the global maternal and perinatal disease burden.
Addressing a Critical Global Health Challenge
Maternal health complications continue to pose a major public health challenge worldwide. Every year, approximately 2 million stillbirths occur globally—equivalent to one every 16 seconds—and 84% of these cases are reported in LMICs. Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, particularly pre-eclampsia, remain among the leading placental causes of stillbirths.
In addition, these conditions contribute significantly to maternal mortality, accounting for an estimated 42,000 maternal deaths annually. Gestational diabetes mellitus affects nearly one in six pregnancies worldwide, with a disproportionately high impact on women in low-resource settings. Together, these conditions increase the risk of stillbirth, preterm birth, and long-term cardiovascular and metabolic complications for both mothers and their children.
Bringing Risk Assessment Closer to Communities
“The women most at risk from pre-eclampsia and gestational diabetes are often the least likely to reach a laboratory or a specialist in time,” said Dr. Anand Sivaraman, Chief Executive Officer and Founding Director, Remidio.
“A retinal image takes seconds and can be captured by a frontline worker with minimal training. This grant enables us to rigorously evaluate whether the platform already deployed widely for diabetic retinopathy can also help identify high-risk pregnancies in the communities where this information is needed most.”
Expanding Access Through Retinal Imaging
Researchers have already established the biological connection between retinal microvascular changes and systemic vascular and metabolic diseases. However, healthcare providers in many primary care and community settings lack access to the diagnostic tools required for early risk stratification.
Traditional approaches often depend on laboratory testing, biochemical biomarkers, and Doppler-based assessments, which require specialized infrastructure, trained personnel, and referral systems. As per the press release, these resources remain unavailable to many pregnant women across LMICs.
By contrast, retinal imaging offers a non-invasive, rapid, and scalable alternative. Frontline healthcare workers can perform the procedure with minimal training, making it well suited for expanding advanced risk assessment at the point of care.
Building Evidence Through AI and Community-Based Validation
“The retina is the only place in the body where blood vessels can be observed directly without an invasive procedure,” said Dr. Divya Rao, Chief Medical Officer and Head of AI, Remidio.
“The microvascular and metabolic changes associated with pre-eclampsia and gestational diabetes leave detectable signatures. Having built and validated our retinal AI on a large and diverse image dataset, our next step is to determine whether these signals remain reliable in community antenatal care settings, across different populations and in the hands of frontline health workers. Evidence—not assumptions—will determine where this approach can deliver meaningful impact.”
Leveraging an Established Screening Platform
Remidio already deploys its portable, smartphone-based retinal imaging platform across primary care and community screening programs for diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
With support from the Gates Foundation grant, the company will now extend the platform’s capabilities into maternal health. The program will be implemented through partner sites across Africa and India, with the goal of improving early detection and risk assessment for pregnancy-related complications in underserved communities.