Villgro Philippines

Villgro Philippiness is an early-stage impact incubator with over 20 years of experience in nurturing social entrepreneurs globally.

Their superpower lies in guiding entrepreneurs through the trials and tribulations of starting a social enterprise, bringing them the tools and resources needed to make a lasting difference at the grassroots level.

As a partner in AI4GH, Villgro Philippines is committed to creating meaningful social impact through entrepreneurship.

Official website: https://villgrophilippines.org/

AI4GH project

AI4Health Asia is a 10-month accelerator program promoting and nurturing responsible AI innovations in healthcare. The program funds and supports startups integrating AI to solve health challenges in South and Southeast Asia, with a focus on Sexual, Reproductive, and Maternal Health, and Epidemic and Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response.

The program aims to create a robust ecosystem of support, providing hands-on commercial, technical, and ethical training and catalyzing promising entrepreneurs with seed funding to grow talent and capacity.

The program also connects AI innovations with appropriate capital providers to improve health systems in the region.

Resources and events

Launch and Learning Lab in April in Bangkok, Thailand.

Villgro Philippines, led by Chairman Priya Thachadi (center, top row), gathers for a team photo with the entrepreneurs selected for AI4Health Asia Accelerator Program.

bubbME.AI

bubbME.ai is an AI-powered educational game (EduGame) and Bot aimed in combating issues and problems related to gender-based violence. It aims to become the “Tamagotchi” that gives challenges, cares, and counsels women and children in acquiring knowledge and awareness towards preventing cyberbullying, phishing, financial scamming, and sexual harassment. The inspiration behind the creation of bubbME.ai is based on how the Indonesia-based team aims to impact the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals 3 (Good Health and Well-being) and 5 (Gender Equality) in their communities.

More information find it here.

Chondo

Chondo is a pioneering femtech platform based in Bangladesh founded in 2021 to track pregnancy and menstrual cycles in women. Their phone application aims to provide medical consultations and educate customers about keeping their mood and symptoms in check when they experience menstruation and pregnancy. The company also offers eco-friendly menstrual products wherein they focus and imbibe their slogans: #BleedwithPride and Embrace the Rhythm of your Body.

More information find it here.

VIVID (Hekate)

Hekate is a Vietnamese-based company that created the AI application called VIVID or known as the Virtual Violations Detector. It aims to protect children and families from the harmful effects of unhealthy food marketing and other health-related concerns. It detects violations and performs a background check on whether companies follow existing laws and conditions concerning various consumer products. VIVID also strengthens the implementation of these, specifically towards breastfeeding and consumption of alcoholic beverages and tobacco products, and soon will expand to sugar-based products.

More information find it here.

Mobiva

Mobiva is a Malaysian-based company that offers mobility solutions for workforce management, disaster risk reduction, and emergency management. Their application aims to create a virtual command center that resolves pandemic and epidemic response. The Mobiva Citizen App, similar to other response measures for natural disasters, is compared to the “Waze”and “Grab” for healthcare and rescue personnel, wherein they can help solve problems related to vaccination and quarantine management. Mobiva is currently planning to further expand its operations by tapping external partners and organizations in the Southeast Asian (SEA) region, particularly in Indonesia and the Philippines.

More information find it here.

Momby

Momby is a mobile application that aims at assisting couples in having a fruitful and endearing partnership in their respective pregnancy and parenthood journeys. It was founded in Vietnam in 2019 by creating a personal AI assistant that allows them to access pertinent information about health and baby care, provide teleconsultation with healthcare providers and doctors (particularly obstetricians and gynecologists), and educate them on proper family planning and health management for children up to five years old. Momby also aims at combating information overload, anxiety, and depression, and direct consultations that take a long time and are pretty expensive.

More information find it here.

Ruangmom

Ruangmom is a reproductive healthcare ecosystem aimed at tackling issues related to sexual, reproductive, and maternal health (SMRH) that focuses on a woman’s journey from pregnancy all the way to motherhood. Their mobile application and website aim to address the problem of limited access to a single reliable source of information concerning reproductive health management. The Indonesian-based company aims to educate, empower, and encourage women to make sound decisions toward managing their financial stability while also taking care of their physical health.

More information find it here.

Sex-O-Phone

Sex-O-Phone is a Thai-based innovative social platform that serves as an electronic sex education consultant through machine learning and natural language processing. The 24/7 application aims to combat problems related to the rising number of teenage pregnancies in the country in recent years. It connects patients and healthcare providers towards consultation concerning sexual, reproductive, and maternal health (SMRH) and alleviates physiological and psychological problems in women’s health. They are built on the three core values of Privacy, Trust, and Professionalism.

More information find it here.

Dr. App

Titanium Technologies, an Information Technology (IT) and Key Performance Objective (KPO) company based in Nepal, created a medical intermediary app called Dr. App. It aims at helping users make informed health-related decisions allowing them to search, locate, and select doctors and pertinent medical institutions. The data set they provide matches their queries and concerns in terms of four different areas: medical proficiency, experience, convenience, and urgency toward addressing health-related concerns. Dr. App is part of a variety of services directed toward alleviating and improving the conditions of reproductive health awareness and education.

More information find it here.

Priya Thachadi, Co-founder

Priya is the Co-founder and CEO of Villgro Philippines, an early-stage incubator and investor that funds, mentors and nurtures impact enterprises building innovative solutions to impact the lives of the poor in the Philippines. Over the last three years, Priya has built the organization from the ground up – sourcing and selecting high-potential entrepreneurs who are solving some of the biggest social challenges in the Philippines, providing mentoring and advisory services to scale their business models and create social impact. Previously, Priya served as the Head of Incubatee Support and Human Capital at Villgro India. She led post-investment support for portfolio companies and pioneered Villgro’s Mentoring and technical assistance initiatives to support entrepreneurs. Prior to Villgro, she worked as a public policy practitioner and researcher in New Delhi with PRS Legislative Research. Priya holds an MA in International Relations from the University of Warwick, a PG diploma in Human Rights Law, a diploma in Journalism and a bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Finance. She is currently a Steering Committee Member of ANDE East and Southeast Asia chapter as well as an advisor to DFAT’s Frontier Innovators. She also serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the leading ed tech company, Edukasyon.ph.

Sofia Gonzalez, Senior Program Associate

Sofia is a Senior Program Associate at Villgro Philippines, assisting in end-to-end management and leading virtual events under the health innovation acceleration programs. She predominantly provides incubation support to the AI4Health Asia regional project in partnership with IDRC Canada. Sofia was formerly a Support Team Lead for a US based e-commerce company, focusing on laying the foundations of its first-ever customer support team. She has had previous experience assisting renowned international human rights and development organizations such as the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

AC Dy, Senior Program Associate

AC is a Senior Program Associate at Villgro Philippines, assisting in end-to-end management and leading virtual and in-person events under several innovation acceleration programs. She is primarily providing incubation support to climate teams and led projects such as the Ways4Waste Post-Program Support and the SUP Challenge in partnership with The Incubation Network. She also supports the AI4Health Asia regional project in partnership with IDRC Canada. Previously, AC had an extensive marketing, sales, and management background in the beauty and FMCG industry under leading local and global companies.

Christian Dominic Angelo Sobremonte, Program Associate

Nicco is a Program Associate at Villgro Philippines, assisting in end-to-end management and leading virtual and in-person events under several innovation acceleration programs. He primarily provides incubation support and assistance to the AI4Health Asia regional project in partnership with IDRC Canada. Previously, Nicco had previous experience with research and survey work when he worked as an intern at the National Book Development Board - Philippines. He also has participated in various student conferences, contests, symposia, and student organizations that allowed him to hone his personal and professional skills, particularly in project and organizational management. His educational background in the Humanities has also allowed him to understand and appreciate the socio-historical and cultural implications of various international and local institutions in different countries.