Ukrainian digital assistant TWIIN presented at the IAS 2025 international conference held from 13 to 17 July in Kigali, Rwanda
TWIIN was featured in the poster exhibition area, where conference participants from around the world had the opportunity to interact with online consultants and learn more about the project from Maria Malakhova, the project coordinator and Programme Manager for Innovation and Digital Projects at the Alliance for Public Health.
As part of the session Harnessing technology: Digital health applications at the IAS Conference on HIV Science, Maria Malakhova presented TWIIN — a digital health assistant developed by the Alliance for Public Health to support key populations.
TWIIN is an innovative AI-powered voice and chat assistant, operating 24/7. It provides support on HIV, STIs, mental health, safer use, human rights, and navigation through available health services. What makes TWIIN unique is its multichannel availability — through websites, mobile apps, API integration, and interactive panels — and its ability to work in both open chat mode and structured dialogue formats.
In her presentation, Maria Malakhova highlighted:
– Evidence on the effectiveness of Embodied Conversational Agents (ECAs) in driving behavior change;
– First implementation results in Ukraine, with over 7,000 users engaged;
– High levels of community acceptance, especially in contexts of stigma, migration, and limited access to healthcare;
– Strategic plans to scale TWIIN across EECA countries, with tailored adaptation to local language and service realities.
The IAS Conference on HIV Science is the world’s largest scientific platform that brings together science, policy, and practice to advance the global HIV response.
The TWIIN presentation demonstrated how technology developed in Ukraine can be scaled as part of an international response to health challenges.