India: IVF group to roll out AI technology in fertility clinics

The fertility group Bloom IVF has announced the roll out of a new AI technology to help aspiring parents struggling to conceive.

The AI software called Life Whisperer analyses images of patient embryos to assess their quality and aims to support embryologists in identifying the embryo most likely to lead to a successful outcome.

Life Whisperer, a product of developed by the healthcare company Presagen, uses AI to assess two embryo quality metrics.

The company says it assesses how likely an embryo is to lead to a pregnancy, and secondly, it also assesses embryo ploidy – the number of sets of chromosomes.

“After extensively testing Life Whisperer’s performance in our own labs, we are excited to be able to offer this new affordable technology for our patients to ensure they can receive the most advanced IVF treatment possible,” said Dr Hrishikesh Pai, Bloom IVF Group’s founder and managing director.

Dr Nandita Palshetkar, Bloom IVF Group’s founder and medical director, said: “This is in line with our mission of being one of the leaders in fertility treatment in India, an achievement we have held for 30 years.”

Bloom IVF Group and Presagen have a partnership aimed at furthering the advancement of AI in fertility and building additional AI technology to improve IVF outcomes.

The Life Whisperer technology is currently authorised for sale in 40 countries, including India and is hoped to help people better understand the IVF procedure and conceive quicker.

Presagen’s CEO, Dr Michelle Perugini said: “We look forward to working with Bloom IVF Group network, who have a reputation for using the latest technology and applying scientific rigor to provide world-leading fertility treatment for their patients.”

Infertility affects approximately 15 per cent of Indian couples with late marriages, stressful lifestyles, obesity, high junk food intake, smoking, alcoholism and drug addiction contributing to the problem.

According to the Call to Action, a report by Ernst and young, the fertility space in India has grown by 20 per cent in the last five years, as the IVF market is booming worldwide.