Healthcare AI Guy Weekly | 10/8

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Highlights if you’ve only got 2 minutes…

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2024 trends shaping the health economy

Trilliant Health just released a report covering 2024 health economy trends and emphasized AI's growing role in healthcare, despite mixed sentiment. While AI adoption is highest in cardiac care, many Americans remain uncomfortable with its use, with only 39% feeling comfortable having AI involved in their care. Physicians are cautiously optimistic, with 72% believing AI will enhance diagnostic ability, though concerns about privacy and the patient-physician relationship persist. AI technologies, such as non-invasive cardiac assessments and diabetic retinopathy screening, are gaining traction, but overall utilization remains low across the board. All in all the report is an excellent set of data and insights around key themes in healthcare in 2024. (link)(tweet)

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Huma acquires eConsult

Huma, backed by $60M in Series D funding, has acquired eConsult, enhancing its digital health platform. Huma aims to be the “Shopify for Digital Health,” offering modular solutions for healthcare providers and pharma companies. The Huma Cloud Platform allows users to build apps with GenAI prompts and pre-built templates, supporting a range of health applications. eConsult’s triage platform guides patients and connects them to appropriate digital solutions, strengthening Huma’s Workspace for Health Systems. With over 3,000 hospitals and clinics using its platform, Huma’s rapid growth suggests further acquisitions are likely as it scales its end-to-end virtual care capabilities. (link)

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Providers/payers ramp up investments in cybersecurity, AI in 2024

Healthcare organizations are boosting IT spending, especially in cybersecurity and AI, after a big cyberattack hit Change Healthcare in February 2024. A survey by KLAS and Bain found that 70% of 150 providers and payers were affected, leading them to audit systems, review vendors, and ramp up security software. Providers are using tech to cut burnout and streamline workflows, while payers focus on improving risk management. AI adoption is growing, with many trying out tools for clinical notes and member engagement. While some hurdles remain, like regulations and costs, the outlook is bright, and excitement around AI continues its steady rise. (link)

Tools & Partnerships 🔧

Latest on business, consumer, and clinical healthcare AI tools and partnerships…

TOOLS

• AI identifies drug candidates for pain relief: Researchers at Cleveland Clinic and IBM just developed an AI model to predict how drugs and gut microbes interact with pain receptors, potentially uncovering new non-addictive pain treatments. The model identified FDA-approved drugs, like methylergometrine, that could potentially be repurposed for pain treatment by targeting specific receptors. (link)

• Innovative AI strategy at the VA: Healthcare technology management chief at the Dayton VA Medical Center, says the VA has integrated an AI algorithm for early detection of lung nodules. AI is also adding administrative and bureaucratic efficiencies. (link)

• Atropos Health releases new scorecards: The real-world data platform released AI “Data Quality ScoreCards,” which provide members of the Atropos Evidence Network feedback on their own data quality. (link)

• AvoMD releases AI consult tool: The AI ambient scribe and clinical decision support vendor launched its EHR-integrated AI consult tool, Ask Avo. (link)

• Mendel AI launches clinical AI platform: The clinical data abstraction vendor launched its Hypercube Platform powered by AWS, which combines LLMs with a proprietary clinical hypergraph to deliver clinical insights. (link)

PARTNERSHIPS

• WellSpan Health + Hippocratic AI: The mid-Atlantic health system partnered with the medical large language model to build a conversational AI phone agent for patient outreach. (link)  

• Shearwater Health + Laguna Health: Shearwater Health is teaming up with Laguna Health to introduce conversational AI and real-time insights into its Clinical Process Outsourcing operations. (link)

• Komodo Health + Cornerstone AI: The claims data vendor is integrating the AI software for cleaning real-world healthcare data into its MapEnhance product. (link)  

• Owkin + AstraZeneca: AI biotech company partnered with AstraZeneca to develop an AI-powered tool designed to prescreen for mutations in breast cancer directly from digitized pathology slides. (link)

Deal Desk 💸 

Spotlight on latest capital raises, M&A, and investments…

FUNDING

• OpenAI, a SF-based AI company, raised $6.6B in funding at a total valuation of $157B. Thrive Capital led the round and was joined by Khosla Ventures, Altimeter Capital, Fidelity, existing investors Nvidia and Microsoft, and others. (link)

• Nym, an autonomous medical coding startup, raised $47M. PSG led, and was joined by Google Ventures, Addition, Samsung Next, and Dynamic Loop Capital. (link)

• VieCure, a Colorado-based intelligence platforms provider for community oncology care, raised $45M in funding from Northpond Ventures. (link)

• Integrated Biosciences, a Redwood City, CA-based synthetic biotechnology company developing therapeutics for age-related diseases, raised $17M in Seed funding. The round was led by Sutter Hill Ventures with participation from others. (link)

• Mindpeak, a provider of AI-powered pathological solutions, raised $15.3M in a Series A funding round. The round was led by ZEISS Ventures and InnoVentureFund with participation from others. (link)

• Lipsunn, an India-based AI-powered mental health platform, raised $2.5M in a pre-Series A funding round led by RPSG Capital Ventures. (link)

GRANTS

• The Cancer AI Alliance, four national cancer institute-designated cancer centers formed a $40M collaboration between major medical institutions and tech giants like Microsoft, AWS, Nvidia, and Deloitte to advance AI-driven cancer care. (link)

MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

• Huma + eConsult: Huma acquired eConsult, enhancing its digital health platform with intelligent triage capabilities, aligning with its goal to provide modular, scalable solutions for healthcare providers and expand its virtual care ecosystem. (link)

Other Relevant News 🔍

News, podcasts, blogs, tweets, resources, etc… 

• Authentication for the era of bots & AI agents (link)

• 4 steps to shore up health equity using AI (link)

• Some doctors are using public AI chatbots in clinical decisions (link)

• AI can reduce fraud, waste, and abuse (link)

• GenAI unbiased in opioid treatments (link)

Visuals of the Week 📸

Funny memes, cool pics, and interesting data from around the web…