Billionaire Jeff Bezos says he spoke directly to WHO and hinted Amazon might deliver COVID-19 test kits globally

• Jeff Bezos posted a picture to Instagram of himself having a video-call with the Director General of WHO to discuss the coronavirus outbreak.
• Bezos said Amazon is already supporting WHO with IT support and providing AI to help its epidemic-mapping tools.
• "We also discussed the urgent need for collective action to produce and distribute plentiful COVID-19 test kits," Bezos said.
• Amazon has already agreed to deliver COVID-19 kits in the UK.
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Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos posted to Instagram on Thursday to say he'd held a video call with the director-general of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

In his post, Bezos listed the ways Amazon is mobilizing to help WHO in its response to the coronavirus pandemic.

According to Bezos, Amazon has already provided web support to WHO, helped integrate artificial intelligence tech into its mapping of the pandemic, and helped translate WHO's materials.

"Our current work with WHO includes: increasing capacity and security for the WHO website; providing ML [machine learning] & AI for WHO's Epidemic Intelligence from Open Sources initiative; assisting with the translation and transcription of WHO's knowledge catalogue; providing logistics support," wrote Bezos.

It's not entirely clear what "logistics support" entails, although Amazon's fleets of delivery drivers could be diverted to help WHO.

Bezos also hinted that Amazon could help to deliver test kits.

"We also discussed the urgent need for collective action to produce and distribute plentiful COVID-19 test kits," he wrote. "A surplus of fast, effective, easy-to-access test kits would flatten the curve and protect people around the world. I told Dr. Tedros we will continue to help WHO in every way we can in the coming weeks and months."

In the UK, Amazon has agreed to deliver millions of at-home COVID-19 tests, starting with healthcare workers then broadening out to the general public.

Unlike many other Silicon Valley billionaires, Bezos hasn't made any public statements about whether he is donating any of his personal fortune towards the fight against the coronavirus. Bezos remains the richest person in the world, with a net worth of $120 billion.

His last piece of public communication about the virus was a letter addressed to Amazon's warehouse workers, many of whom have voiced concerns about the steps the company is taking to safeguard their health. "My own time and thinking is now wholly focused on COVID-19 and how Amazon can best play its role," Bezos wrote in the letter.

Warehouse workers in at least 10 US warehouses have now tested positive for the virus.