Health kiosk operator Higi has announced that British-based chatbot company Babylon is leading a $30 million Series B funding round that will support Higi’s expansion of its network and help it to further develop its digital assessment capabilities.
Higi’s kiosks allow users to measure and track metrics such as blood pressure, weight and body mass index (BMI), and with over 10,000 of their free-to-use ‘smart health stations’ located in grocery stores, drug stores and community centers, the company says it has a presence within five miles of 73% of the U.S. population
To date, more than 62 million people have completed over 335 million biometric assessments using the kiosks, and with help from partners such as Kroger, Giant Eagle, and Rite Aid.
“Higi and Babylon have a shared focus on democratizing access and affordability in healthcare,” said Brian Skiba, vice president of corporate development at Babylon, in an interview with FierceHealthcare.
“The U.S. healthcare system is simply too expensive and it’s hard for consumers to access care,” Higi CEO Jeff Bennett added. “Higi’s stations make healthcare more accessible to people by providing services in locations that are part of people’s day-to-day lives, such as visiting the grocery or drug store.”