Paula Zabala

Chilean tech innovator creating AI solutions for rural healthcare access

Paula Zabala is a biomedical engineer from Santiago, Chile, whose startup MedLinkAI has developed an AI-driven telemedicine platform transforming healthcare delivery in remote regions. Launched in 2020, the platform uses machine learning algorithms to analyze medical images and diagnostic data from basic health centers, providing real-time consultations with specialists in urban hospitals. This system has reduced diagnosis waiting times by 80% in regions like the Atacama Desert and Patagonia.

MedLinkAI's 2023 partnership with the Chilean Ministry of Health now serves 150 rural clinics, reaching over 500,000 patients annually. Paula's team developed a low-cost peripheral device that connects basic ultrasound machines to smartphones, enabling remote diagnostics in areas with limited infrastructure. The technology received FDA clearance in 2024 and is being piloted in Peruvian Andes communities through collaboration with PAHO.

Paula's advocacy led to Chile's 2022 Digital Health Law requiring telemedicine integration in all rural hospitals. Her research on AI ethics in healthcare was published in Nature Digital Medicine, and she advises the WHO's Digital Health Task Force. Current initiatives include developing an AI-powered early warning system for chronic diseases in indigenous communities.