{
  "id": 12458279,
  "title": "Ask a Scientist: How are researchers using AI to help pregnant women access ultrasounds?",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/06/ask-a-scientist-how-are-researchers-using-ai-to-help-pregnant-women",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-10-06T18:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Google Blog",
    "slug": "google-blog",
    "url": "https://blog.google/innovation-and-ai/models-and-research/google-research/blind-sweep-ultrasounds-ai/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Researchers at Google are leveraging artificial intelligence to improve access to ultrasounds for pregnant women, particularly in under-resourced areas. The team has developed a portable, offline-capable technology that enables healthcare workers to perform simple \"blind sweep\" ultrasounds and accurately determine gestational age and fetal position using machine learning models. This innovative approach addresses the global gap in prenatal care by providing essential diagnostic information to women in regions with limited access to ultrasound services. By training healthcare workers to perform these ultrasounds and using AI to interpret the results, Google researchers have demonstrated that this method can be as accurate as traditional ultrasound methods conducted by trained sonographers. This breakthrough has the potential to greatly enhance prenatal care and improve maternal healthcare outcomes for women worldwide.",
  "summary": "By pairing AI with “blind sweep” ultrasounds, Google researchers found a way to get more people the prenatal ultrasounds they need.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}