In various sectors, AI is constantly pushing the boundaries of knowledge. In Africa particularly, tech entrepreneurs are leveraging it to offer tailor-made and innovative solutions to identified challenges.

Baby Cry Insights is a mobile application developed by Nigerian start-up Ubenwa. It helps parents interpret their babies’ cries. 

“Ubenwa is building a diagnostic tool that understands when a baby’s cry is a cry for medical attention. [...] Ultimately, our goal is to be a translator for baby cry sounds, providing a non-invasive way to monitor medical conditions everywhere you find a baby: delivery rooms, neonatal and pediatric intensive care units, nurseries, and in the home,” explains Charles Onu, CEO and co-founder of Ubenwa. 

Baby Cry Insights is available for Android and iOS devices. Using any of those versions, a user can create a profile and record the cries of the baby to be monitored. The embedded AI-powered system then analyzes the cries to pinpoint the potential triggers identified. Whether it's fear, pain, discomfort, or hunger, the user will know the baby’s sentiment at that moment and act accordingly. 

Baby Cry Insights sends a "report to better understand acoustic markers such as pitch frequency and intensity, and track which soothing technique worked best for your little one,” we learn.

The application also enables a user to share a baby’s profile with a second parent or nanny to make babysitting easier. With features like routine monitoring and health information, it facilitates the monitoring of babies’ daily routines such as sleeping, eating, breastfeeding, and any disturbances in their state of health. Users can thus anticipate medical assistance and better manage their baby's state of health.

Since its launch in 2017, the startup behind the solution has raised about $2.3 million to develop its technology and support growth. The Android version of its app has been downloaded more than a thousand times.

Adoni Conrad Quenum