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Slang, Accents, and Algorithms: Teaching AI to Understand Real Patients - Dr. Bilal Mateen
How safe are the new wave of AI scribes? To what extent do large tech companies use their influence to push you toward specific solutions - be it a drug, a surgery, or a product? And what does the rise of anglocentric Large Language Models mean for communities in places like Kenya, Rwanda, and Pakistan.
Join Cat and Maxine as they tackle Ambient Voice Technology research and interview Dr. Bilal Mateen, Chief AI Officer at PATH, about the practical and ethical hurdles of implementing state-of-the-art technologies in diverse global settings.
- How much information do AI scribes pick up?
- How does the business model of an AI tool affect its recommendations?
- What is the surprising connection between "pieces of meat" and LLMs? (Tune in to hear the full metaphor.)
Chapters:
00:00 - Introduction
02:26 - AI Scribes: Promise & Pitfalls
04:58 - Welcoming Dr. Bilal Mateen
06:32 - Bilal’s Story: Water Bottle & Early Inspiration
08:21 - Reflections on Jane Goodall & Global Health
10:05 - What Does a Chief AI Officer Do?
13:10 - Generative AI in Low-Resource Settings
19:47 - Anglocentrism in LLM-Based Tools
25:56 - Data Colonialism
30:26 - Community Voices & Closing Thoughts
Competing Interests for Bilal Mateen: Employed by PATH, an American International NGO. Honorary Professorial Chair at the University of Birmingham in Machine Learning for Health. Occasional unpaid advisory roles for the World Health Organisation. Doesn’t own stocks and shares in any individual company.
Resources and Links:
BMJ Future Health Event
https://futurehealth.bmj.com/
Clinical AI Scribes in primary care: accuracy, error severity and implications for clinical practice | BMJ Digital Health & AI
https://bmjdigitalhealth.bmj.com/content/1/1/e000092
PATH: https://www.path.org/
Between Myths and Metaphors: Rethinking LLMs for SRH in Conservative Contexts
https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.01907
"Koyi Sawaal Nahi Hai": Reimagining Maternal Health Chatbots for Collective, Culturally Grounded Care
https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.27401
Book Recommendation: High Noon: 20 Global Problems in 20 Years to Solve Them by Jean-François Rischard.
People Mentioned:
Jane Goodall (Ethologist and Conservationist)
Jean-François Rischard (Vice President of the World Bank (1998 to 2005))
Maryam Mustafa (Assistant Professor at the Department of Computer Science at the Lahore University of Management Sciences, Pakistan).
Samuel Rutunda (CTO at Digital Umuganda, an AI company specialising in language technology for African languages)
Production:
Assistant Producer: Brian Kennedy
Producer: Brian O’Toole
Senior Producer: Paul Simpson
Exec Producer: Cat Bruce
Find more from BMJ Future Health on:
- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bmj-future-health-podcast/id1739815865
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2qrcv6rN2Xhli7VbZdnyAN
- Podbean: https://bmjfuturehealth.podbean.com/
View all episodes
By BMJ Publishing GroupHow safe are the new wave of AI scribes? To what extent do large tech companies use their influence to push you toward specific solutions - be it a drug, a surgery, or a product? And what does the rise of anglocentric Large Language Models mean for communities in places like Kenya, Rwanda, and Pakistan.
Join Cat and Maxine as they tackle Ambient Voice Technology research and interview Dr. Bilal Mateen, Chief AI Officer at PATH, about the practical and ethical hurdles of implementing state-of-the-art technologies in diverse global settings.
- How much information do AI scribes pick up?
- How does the business model of an AI tool affect its recommendations?
- What is the surprising connection between "pieces of meat" and LLMs? (Tune in to hear the full metaphor.)
Chapters:
00:00 - Introduction
02:26 - AI Scribes: Promise & Pitfalls
04:58 - Welcoming Dr. Bilal Mateen
06:32 - Bilal’s Story: Water Bottle & Early Inspiration
08:21 - Reflections on Jane Goodall & Global Health
10:05 - What Does a Chief AI Officer Do?
13:10 - Generative AI in Low-Resource Settings
19:47 - Anglocentrism in LLM-Based Tools
25:56 - Data Colonialism
30:26 - Community Voices & Closing Thoughts
Competing Interests for Bilal Mateen: Employed by PATH, an American International NGO. Honorary Professorial Chair at the University of Birmingham in Machine Learning for Health. Occasional unpaid advisory roles for the World Health Organisation. Doesn’t own stocks and shares in any individual company.
Resources and Links:
BMJ Future Health Event
https://futurehealth.bmj.com/
Clinical AI Scribes in primary care: accuracy, error severity and implications for clinical practice | BMJ Digital Health & AI
https://bmjdigitalhealth.bmj.com/content/1/1/e000092
PATH: https://www.path.org/
Between Myths and Metaphors: Rethinking LLMs for SRH in Conservative Contexts
https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.01907
"Koyi Sawaal Nahi Hai": Reimagining Maternal Health Chatbots for Collective, Culturally Grounded Care
https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.27401
Book Recommendation: High Noon: 20 Global Problems in 20 Years to Solve Them by Jean-François Rischard.
People Mentioned:
Jane Goodall (Ethologist and Conservationist)
Jean-François Rischard (Vice President of the World Bank (1998 to 2005))
Maryam Mustafa (Assistant Professor at the Department of Computer Science at the Lahore University of Management Sciences, Pakistan).
Samuel Rutunda (CTO at Digital Umuganda, an AI company specialising in language technology for African languages)
Production:
Assistant Producer: Brian Kennedy
Producer: Brian O’Toole
Senior Producer: Paul Simpson
Exec Producer: Cat Bruce
Find more from BMJ Future Health on:
- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bmj-future-health-podcast/id1739815865
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2qrcv6rN2Xhli7VbZdnyAN
- Podbean: https://bmjfuturehealth.podbean.com/