The global healthcare industry faces a daunting challenge: a projected shortage of 4.5 million nurses by 2030. To meet this crisis, Foxconn and NVIDIA are joining forces to introduce advanced robotics and artificial intelligence into hospitals. Their initiative aims to relieve staff burnout and improve care quality. Central to this effort is Nurabot, an intelligent nursing robot designed to automate repetitive and physically demanding tasks like medication delivery and sample transport. By handling these chores, Nurabot gives nurses more time to focus on patients.
Smart Hospitals Powered by AI and Robotics
Foxconn’s strategy harnesses NVIDIA technology to create a suite of smart hospital solutions. These innovations include:
- AI-enabled robots such as Nurabot, deployed for daily operational support
- Digital twins of hospital environments, used for planning and staff training
- Advanced AI models that enable real-time health monitoring and medical imaging enhancements
Leading Taiwanese hospitals, including Taichung Veterans General Hospital and Cardinal Tien Hospital, are already seeing the benefits. These facilities report that robotic assistants help clinicians provide more meaningful, focused care for their patients.
AI From Data Centers to the Patient’s Bedside
Foxconn’s approach starts with powerful data centers that use NVIDIA Hopper GPUs and the Honhai Super AI Computing Center 1 to create healthcare-focused AI models. Among these is the FoxBrain large language model, built with the NVIDIA NeMo framework, which powers advanced features like speech recognition and diagnostic support.
Through the CoDoctor AI platform, clinicians can access tools for retinal imaging, vital sign tracking, arrhythmia detection, and cancer screening. NVIDIA DGX systems drive these tools, while the NVIDIA AI Blueprint for video analysis helps hospital staff manage events and generate visual records, streamlining operations.
Reimagining Medical Imaging and Hospital Design
Foxconn’s CoroSegmentater, an AI tool for 3D coronary artery segmentation, is being integrated into the open-source MONAI platform. Using NVIDIA Omniverse and Isaac for Healthcare, medical teams can visualize these models in 3D, improving diagnostics and patient education. The Omniverse platform also enables the creation of digital twins—virtual hospital replicas used for planning, optimization, and robot training before real-world implementation.
Nurabot’s Impact on Daily Hospital Life
Developed with Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Nurabot combines FoxBrain LLM, virtual simulation, and NVIDIA Holoscan sensor processing on Jetson Orin edge devices. Pilot programs at Taichung Veterans General Hospital have shown that Nurabot can reduce nurses’ workloads by as much as 30%. The robot delivers supplies, guides patients, and assists during night shifts when staffing is minimal.
Nurses report that Nurabot reduces physical strain and saves valuable time, allowing them to focus more on direct patient care. Planned upgrades will allow Nurabot to communicate in multiple languages, recognize faces for personalized interactions, and provide physical assistance to patients.
Scaling Up: The Future of Smart Hospitals
Positive feedback from initial field trials has prompted plans to deploy dozens more Nurabots at Taichung Veterans General Hospital by year’s end. The project, highlighted by NVIDIA’s CEO at major tech events, marks a significant step toward a future where AI and robotics transform healthcare delivery, ease clinician workloads, and enhance patient experiences worldwide.
Takeaway
Foxconn’s collaboration with NVIDIA is redefining what’s possible in smart hospitals. By automating routine tasks, optimizing imaging, and leveraging digital twins, these innovations not only address workforce shortages but also set the stage for more efficient and patient-centric healthcare across the globe.
Source: NVIDIA Blog
How Foxconn and NVIDIA Are Transforming Hospitals With Smart Robotics