SASKATOON, Saskatchewan — 23rd September 2026 — Viamo and Google are working together to expand access to AI through the phones and mobile networks people already use, especially on basic feature phones that require no internet connection.
AI is advancing rapidly, but billions of people remain excluded by language, device and connectivity barriers. Access still largely depends on having a smartphone, a reliable internet connection, affordable data and the ability to navigate supported languages and digital applications.
Viamo and Google are working to change that by bringing AI to voice, enabling people to interact with AI through a simple phone call, using existing mobile infrastructure and their own language.
This work sits alongside a broader global effort to make AI more accessible across languages and voice. Viamo and Google are also co-signatories to a Gates Foundation-led coalition of 60 organizations committed to helping an estimated 3.4 billion people who speak languages currently underrepresented in AI use AI in their own language and voice. Together, these efforts reflect a shared ambition: a future where access to AI is not limited by the language you speak, the device you have or how you connect.
”The benefits of AI shouldn’t depend on speaking the right language, owning the latest device, or even having an internet connection. Our work with Google is about making AI universally accessible, so that anyone can pick up their phone, make a call, and get the information and opportunities they need in their own language.
Kellen EilertsChief Partnerships Officer at Viamo
From digital access to AI access
AI distribution does not have to follow internet distribution.
While smartphones, apps and internet connectivity have become the primary ways people interact with AI, the phones and mobile networks needed to reach a much broader population already exist. Voice provides a way to build AI experiences on top of that infrastructure, extending access beyond traditional internet channels.
Viamo already has the distribution layer and operating infrastructure needed to deliver this at scale, including voice technology, local-language channels, mobile network operator relationships and established reach across Africa and Asia. Today, Viamo reaches more than 25 million people through automated voice calls, interactive hotlines, Voice AI and local-language engagement.
Making AI work through the channels people already use
The goal is not to require people to adapt to new technology, but to make technology work through channels that are already part of their daily lives.
Through voice, interacting with AI can be as simple as making a phone call in your own language. This opens access not only to information and services, but also to the educational, economic and livelihood opportunities increasingly enabled by AI, without requiring the latest device or an internet-based application.
As AI becomes increasingly capable, expanding the ways people can access it will be just as important as expanding what the technology can do.
The Viamo and Google collaboration represents a different approach to AI distribution: using existing phones, mobile networks and voice infrastructure to extend the reach of AI to people who may otherwise be excluded from the standard smartphone and internet ecosystem.
”By engaging directly with these communities and markets, we create an environment where data collection delivers meaningful value for everyone involved. Meeting people where they are allows us to unlock greater collective human potential and accelerate breakthroughs.
Hadar ShemtovDirector, Engineering – Gen AI at Google
Together, Viamo and Google showcase a more inclusive approach to AI distribution, one that combines the reach of existing mobile infrastructure with the power of AI to make trusted, understandable information accessible to more people.
The video is now available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0emSrdaZuNQ&t=5s
To learn more about Viamo’s work and its vision for accessible AI, visit viamo.io
About Viamo
Viamo is building universal access to the benefits of AI, using voice and existing mobile networks to reach people who cannot reliably access AI through smartphones or the internet.
For more than a decade, Viamo has built the technology, mobile network operator relationships and local-language channels needed to connect people with information and services across Africa and Asia. Today, Viamo reaches more than 25 million people through automated voice calls, interactive hotlines, Voice AI and local-language engagement.
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