Zeshan Muhammedi

Some VC investors believe that brick and mortar - referring to a physical presence of some kind - should be avoided at all costs. Yet, the track record of clinic and hybrid care businesses in health care indicates otherwise. ==> One Medical (sold for $3.9 billion to Amazon), Oak Street (bought by CVS for $10.6 billion), Lifestance (IPO at $7.5 billion market cap), and PE-backed Premise Health (acquired by OMERS Private Equity for $1.1 billion) If a clinic is indicated as the optimal way to deliver care for that patient population, there are creative ways to build and operate them. Full article below with advice and strategies on how to build and operate hybrid clinics from my teammate Anarghya Vardhana from Maveron, Amir Dan Rubin from OneMedical Group, Steven Eidelman from Modern Animal and more!

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On the latest Vital Signs, Nikhil Krishnan and I had a ton of fun chatting with Dr. Atul Butte. Dr. Butte is a professor at UCSF, Chief Data Scientist of the UC Health System, and a co-founder of numerous healthcare startups. In our conversation, Dr. Butte shared his takes on healthcare AI opportunities, challenges, hype, and more. A few highlights: ⚡LLM use cases, data, and growth LLMs are already helping to solve the “drudgery” aspects of medicine, such as automatically drafting SOAP notes and patient messages. Dr. Butte is excited about future applications of LLMs that can help with the “cognitive” aspects: with difficult medical problems an LLM might be able to stitch together disparate pieces of information to generate a potentially novel solution. He also highlights that prompt engineering will become the next “coding language” as so much of leveraging LLMs is knowing how to ask them the right questions. Additionally, Dr. Butte discusses how since 2016, UCSF has been working to deidentify its patient notes so that it can query them to answer clinical questions and ultimately enhance patient care. ⚡The need for patient-facing AI As patients are increasingly able to access their own personal health data in nicely structured formats (e.g., EHRs, wearables), they desperately need more tools to help them interpret and make decisions using that data. Dr. Butte understands that these patient-facing solutions are challenging to get funded but he emphasizes that patients need to receive the benefits of AI sooner. ⚡Evaluating healthcare AI solutions In order to evaluate AI solutions, we often put human specialists – such as medical professionals – on the same tasks. Understanding that specialists often disagree with each other, a significant challenge arises in figuring out how we can evaluate AI considering we can’t just “average” all the specialist opinions. Dr. Butte points out that there still remains a massive gap in AI evaluation tools. Additionally, there are so many organizations that want to have a say in how healthcare AI is regulated that the landscape is uncertain. An awesome conversation with an expert on all things AI meets healthcare. Listen to the full episode below: Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3Wr3643 Apple: https://apple.co/4acwgan

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"Digital health is no longer the future; it is the present, reshaping our healthcare landscape in real-time." Excited to be part of the UCSF Digital Health Hub Foundation's Quarterfinalist Party! As a past board member, I'm honored to celebrate the outstanding quarterfinalists. As we reflect on the state of digital health in 2024, it's evident that the COVID-19 pandemic has fundamentally transformed healthcare delivery. The rapid adoption of telemedicine during the crisis has become a permanent fixture, with over 60% of physicians continuing to utilize this technology. The sprint towards smarter healthcare, catalyzed by necessity, has shattered preconceptions about digital-first health experiences. Virtual care is no longer a stopgap but an integral part of a seamless, anytime, anywhere health ecosystem. 🌍 We're witnessing the rise of B2B2C models in remote consultations, with companies like Teladoc Health and Amwell partnering with insurance providers to integrate their services into health plans. Public sector collaborations, like eConsult Health 's partnership with the NHS in the #UK, underscore the potential for remote consultations to enhance efficiency and accessibility at a national level. The digital health landscape is evolving rapidly, with advancements in remote consultations, mental health support, at-home diagnostics, and patient monitoring. AI and generative AI transform care delivery, making it more efficient, personalized, and patient-centric. 🤖 Yet, challenges remain. While venture capital funding for digital health has stabilized after the pandemic boom, it remains below its 2021 peak. Sectors like digital therapeutics face reimbursement hurdles, and we've seen major players like Walmart and Optum close telehealth businesses. Looking ahead, we anticipate further consolidation in digital health, driven by acquisitions to create broader ecosystems encompass telemedicine, mental health, and other specialized services. As healthcare leaders, we must leverage these digital advancements to improve access, enhance patient outcomes, and drive efficiency in our healthcare systems. The future of healthcare is digital, and the time to embrace this transformation is now. Congratulations to all the finalists! 🎉 Looking forward to the grand finale at #HLTH2024 in #LasVegas! 🙌 By the way, the pink drink that we were holding was delicious—and nonalcoholic! The Digital Health Hub Foundation - Digital Health Awards #HealthcareInnovation #DigitalHealth #UCSFHealthHub #Networking #HealthTech #Entrepreneurship #LasVegasFinale Walter Greenleaf, PhD Daniel Kraft, MD Unity Stoakes StartUp Health University of California, San Francisco UCSF Innovation Ventures American Association for Precision Medicine (AAPM) WISE World Investors & Entrepreneurs Society #AAPMhealth #aapm_health

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The (Healthcare) Ground Beneath Our Feet… This year it is likely that over $10 billion will be invested in the digital health sector – a robust amount, no doubt, but inconsequential when compared to the amount of capital tied up in healthcare real estate assets, which is estimated to be $1.2 trillion by Jones Lang Lasalle. Of that amount, approximately $790 billion is in the hospital sector while the remaining $490 billion is in medical office assets. It is estimated that there are 48.6k facilities with 3.4 billion square feet of healthcare real estate, 42% of which are owned by REITs and another 33% held by other private investment vehicles. Much of the digital health investment is meant to make the physical healthcare infrastructure more productive: greater operating efficiencies, greater patient throughput, more relevant personalized care models with better outcomes. As the healthcare system is being pushed to be more distributed to lower cost sites of care, accelerated now by the rapid proliferation of automation and AI capabilities, the potential impact on healthcare infrastructure assets will be profound. Thoughts on what that might look like... https://lnkd.in/eTfAdUbS #digitalhealth Flare Capital Partners

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No founder wants to pitch a VC with no cash.  That’s why we’re sharing the list of firms below that have fresh capital to deploy. 🔴 Barcelona based Asabys Partners closed its second $201.3M fund to invest in biotech, med-tech, and digital health companies. 🔴 Chicago based ARCH Venture Partners closed its thirteenth $3B fund to focus on biotechnology companies. 🔴 Palo Alto based DCVC closed its third $400M biotech fund to back data-driven life science businesses. 🔴 Miami based Boldstart Ventures raised its seventh $250M fund to invest in enterprise infra and SaaS startups. 🔴 New York based The Fintech Fund raised its second $10M fund to focus on founders with strong backgrounds in building financial products.

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Interesting report from PitchBook on first quarter Digital Health VC activity. - $1.1 billion in funding. Key late-stage deals were led by Transcarent ($126M) and Rightway ($108.8M). - The top investment categories were general & primary care ($213.4M) and health benefits navigation ($140.7M). Challenges & Trends: Valuations: Less than 20% of startups reported a priced round in the last 18 months, with an increase in extension/bridge rounds. Digital Therapeutics: Facing significant challenges due to elusive reimbursement and cautious investors. Better Therapeutics is winding down operations, and Akili is being taken private for $34M, a sharp decline from its peak valuation of nearly $450M. Telehealth: Setbacks include the shutdown of Optum's virtual care and Walmart's telehealth services. The pandemic saw over $15B in VC funding since 2020, but some platforms struggled with unsustainable business models and strategic missteps (e.g., Teladoc's costly Livongo acquisition and Amwell's delisting from Nasdaq). Looking Ahead: While digital therapeutics and telehealth face hurdles, there's potential in: Platforms integrating various treatments for conditions like diabetes, metabolic health, and mental health. Specialty telemedicine, B2B platforms, and hybrid-care models, which offer a promising investment outlook. Despite current challenges, strategic investments and a focus on sustainable models can drive the next wave of innovation in digital health. As a former digital health founder, I encourage founders in this space to keep going...there is light at the end of the tunnel! If you are a digital health founder with impressive traction based in Virginia, feel free to reach out! #digitalhealth #venturecapital #virginiaipc #virginiainvests

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The most talked about AI x Medical startup Abridge is working to rescue doctors from the never-ending admin grind (which causes burnout and less patient face-time). Abridge's AI listens to patient visits and generates precise medical notes, slashing the clerical workload. Now, doctors can focus on what truly matters: patient care. Major health systems like Yale and Emory are already on board and raving, calling it "life-changing" and "magical." 🔷 A big reason --> Payback of the scribe tool is easy to measure. It supports 14 languages including Haitian Creole, Brazilian Portuguese, and Punjabi. An ongoing criticism of generative AI is that it still has few substantive business applications. This seems to quash that. Question: is a dedicated medical LLM needed to be successful in the space? Or will the huge foundational models (GPT-4o, Google, and Meta) ingest a plethora of medical notes and kill the competition with performance? We're dealing with a fast and furious pace, and today's edge may not be relevant tomorrow. Competitors include Microsoft-owned Nuance Healthcare , Ambience Healthcare, Nabla and Suki. I'm excited to continue to see this field revolutionized. 🌟 #AI #MedTech #Abridge #HealthTech

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M13 is thrilled to lead the Series A in RadiantGraph which is focused on personalization in healthcare. As we continue to invest in early stage companies it is abundantly clear that the biggest indicator of success is the founder and his or her ability to execute on their vision of the future. In this case, I don't think I have seen much better founder-market fit than we have with founder and CEO Anmol Madan. We believe in his vision: in order to have the best patient outcomes in healthcare we need increased personalization and AI is the breakthrough to get us there. Anmol started one of the pioneering digital health companies Ginger and then was Chief Data Scientist at Livongo and Teledoc. He has done it all: early stage, late stage, public company. And he deeply understands the nuances of the healthcare market from all angles which is critical for success. While there are many players building healthcare-specific AI capabilities, RadiantGraph is focused on outcomes: The platform is already processing personalization models for more than 3.5 million people, despite launching just last year. Excited to partner with my friend Adam D'Augelli and the great True Ventures again and Morgan Blumberg who has been deep in the healthcare market with me for many years. More on our thesis in the blog below. https://lnkd.in/evDDmC3W

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🌟 Investing in the Future of Healthcare with Edge AI 🌟 At August Global Partners, we're excited about the potential of Edge AI in revolutionizing healthcare. As Wen H. Hsieh, Ph.D., insightfully notes, "AI has huge utility for all edge applications... training is a cost, inference is revenue" ... and more ... Why Edge AI in Healthcare? - Real-Time Monitoring: Wearables equipped with Edge AI provide continuous health data, empowering proactive health management and early disease detection.    - Post-Operative Care: These devices enable remote monitoring from home, reducing hospital stays and enhancing recovery by detecting complications early. - Preventive Healthcare: By providing real-time insights, wearables help prevent health issues before they escalate, optimizing patient outcomes Edge AI is transforming healthcare into a more efficient and patient-centered system. We're committed to investing in these innovations that promise better health outcomes and value. Join us as we embrace the edge of healthcare innovation. The future is here, and it's happening now. #EdgeAI #HealthcareInnovation #PostOperativeCare #AugustGlobalPartners

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One of my proudest moments as an investor occurred today as Alaffia Health announced its series A because it shows how the Aperture® Venture Capital vision of multi-level, multi-generational #impactinvesting is succeeding in the marketplace. Here’s the model in its most basic form : ✅As diverse fund managers with meaningful capital to allocate, we are changing the VC landscape every day just by doing our day jobs. ✅As Black/Brown investors with ~40 years experience collectively, Aperture GPs have access to talent /excellence that others do not, so our portfolio *organically* is more inclusive by race, gender and geography even while optimizing for financial outcomes (all about the alpha). ✅Our most successful portco’s are using financial #innovation to solve market problems that impact underrepresented demographics and underserved communities. Alaffia Health is a shining example of the impact portion of our overall fund thesis, and we couldn’t be prouder of TJ Ademiluyi and Adun Akanni, MPH, PMP - the dynamic brother-sister founder duo whose vision we have steadfastly supported on their journey. Congratulations to TJ and Adun from William Crowder and myself, as well as the whole Aperture team- Marjorie King Philip McKenzie Yves Louis-Jacques Tanvi Lal Michelle Dhansinghani Lisha Bell Katie Kelly Amy Chung Cindy Chong, CFA Brian Fernandes-Halloran Monroe France Jayden Pantel Darren Herman Evan Wladis Neal Triplett Thomas Scriven Peter Ammon Irina Bit-Babik Tim Milanich Rob Rahbari

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🚀 Meet Our Advisors! We are excited to highlight that Neil Littman, Founding Partner of Bioverge Ventures and Partner of Riverine Ventures, as one of the esteemed advisors in our #H7 accelerator program. 👉 We are open for application for the 2024 Cohort of H7 Healthcare Accelerator, powered by H7 BioCapital. Early Bird Applications are open until 💥 July 20th 💥! 🦄 Apply for the Program: https://shorturl.at/TfJdB 🦄 Apply to Become Advisor: https://lnkd.in/eSbGpX28  📅 Early Bird Deadline: July 20th, 2024 🎯 About H7 Accelerator Program: https://lnkd.in/g3ycA8eE ------- 🎯Get to know our top-tier accelerator advisor - Neil Littman "Neil Littman, M.S. is Founder & CEO of Bioverge Ventures, a venture capital firm exclusively dedicated to investing in #earlystage, #cuttingedge #healthcare companies. Bioverge’s investment thesis is focused on companies spanning the intersection of health + tech that are utilizing advances in technology to modernize healthcare, from bench-to-bedside." "Previously, Neil was Vice President of Business Development at Notable Labs, an oncology startup and Bioverge portfolio company, where he led the development of global corporate partnerships and contributed to the strategic vision of Notable as part of the Senior Leadership Team. Neil oversaw business development at Notable through the successful completion of the company’s $40 million Series B and was instrumental in negotiating multiple terms sheets to in-license clinical stage oncology assets." 🌷Apply now to learn invaluable insights from Neil Littman get connected with our 100+ industrial leading experts, pitch to top #investors, and scale your #startup! 🥳 Once you're selected for #H7 accelerator cohort, you'll be part of the #H7 community for life. Expand your business and expand your network with access to a talented group of founders, investors, mentors, and industry leaders. #accelerator #venturecapital #fundraising #healthcare #lifesciences #biotech #drugdevelopment #artificialintelligence #medicaldevices #hospitals #clinicaltrials #oncology #research #startup #founders #precisionmedicine #commercialization #sales

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I’ve had the chance to go deep with a number of digital health alum, healthcare mentors and #corporate innovation partners over the past few days. A few themes to share:   1. Digital will change healthcare. Period. How is hard. But it will happen and the best are continuing to push ahead. 2. What keeps companies in the S&P 500 for 50 years or more? Partnerships and innovation. This is why large systems must practice the hard art of both partnership and partnership towards innovation. For startups, partnership reps may be more important than brand. 3. There is a difference between needs and behaviors that startups need to understand, especially in Healthcare where incentives, process, practices are complex. Finding who pays early is not only essential but existential. 4. Don’t optimize for valuation, optimize for value. Over the long-run, this is what will matter. In Healthcare, today value will have to tie to ROI. Pharma, providers, payors are under pressure. Your solution needs to be must-have and drive ROI.   MC Healthcare was launched over 5 years ago to accelerate industry/startup intelligence and collaboration and commercial partnerships for digital health startups and industry (payors, providers, pharma). Calling startups to apply. Want to be a partner to find and work with the best? DM me directly.

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Excited for this one. Congrats to Alex Cohen and Hello Patient on their seed round announcement. Hello Patient stands to change the communication paradigm between patients and providers forever. Their generative AI call agent technology is tackling the tremendous admin burden of patient facing comms (scheduling, follow ups, referrals, prescription refills, etc). Massive opportunity and we think Alex and his team are expertly positioned to become market leaders. Max Ventures is thrilled to co-lead the seed round with 8VC and Bling Capital A great quote below from Alex highlighting the concept of "service as a software". Healthcare is a heavily service oriented industry - so the opportunity for step change is even more profound. The startup's approach is part of a paradigm shift where AI companies are offering service as software. "I'm a big believer that the right way to do this is through a managed services business. We're not building SaaS. I believe we can do this services as software where what was traditionally a services business now has software margins because I don't have to go employ a whole bunch of people to do the services under the hood," Cohen noted. https://lnkd.in/ehNN2AmW

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🧬 This week's Austin Bio & Health Roundup highlights new funding, intriguing data, and major commercial & scientific milestones 🧬 💰 Funding Hello Patient, building Gen-AI phone agents for healthcare providers, came out of stealth with a $6.3M seed raise. Congrats Alex Cohen! And it’s Austin funding Austin, with 8VC a key part of the round. Aspira Women's Health, focused on non-invasive AI-powered diagnostics, was awarded a $10M grant from ARPA-H to advance their blood test for endometriosis. Well done, Nicole Sandford, Sandy Milligan, MD JD & team. Maxwell Biosciences, a synthetic small molecule drug platform, received ~$3M from the Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium (MTEC) to find assets that will prevent wound infection on the battlefield. Fantastic work, Joshua McClure & team. Reminder: I don’t cover SEC filings. When the builders themselves announce, I’ll shout it from the rooftops! 📊 Data Clutch VC released its Texas Seed Funding Update (YTD Q3): YTD 387 seed rounds raised for a total $636M. Though deal counts are down QoQ, capital invested has trended upward, making this the highest quarter since Q1 2023. Health was the second largest sector with 27% of all capital raised so far this year, up from 16% during the same time frame last year. Great data & insights Rajiv Bala, Steve Coffey, and Caitlin McHugh. 🤝 M&A and Partnerships Lumos Pharma entered a merger agreement with Double Point Ventures, going private at a $38M valuation. 🚀 Launches, Expansions, Milestones, and Wins Oracle Health announced updates to its Data Intelligence platform, with enhancements to Clinical, Analytics, and Care Coordination products. 🤠 Texas Bio Triangle Houston-based Coya Therapeutics, Inc. shared positive results from a double-blind study of low-dose interleukin-2 (LD-IL-2) in Alzheimer’s, showing the therapy is safe and well tolerated with promising trends toward cognitive improvement. Amazing Howard Berman, PhD, Arun Swaminathan, and the rest of the team. Dallas-based Stone Mountain Ventures closed a $5M Fund II focused on health & AI. Fund I included Austin Bio & Health startups Legion Health and MDisrupt. Congratulations, John Diaz and keep looking at Austin for new opportunities! Quick Note: Some items this week actually happened last week, apologies if I missed them! Please tag or message me for future announcements so I can make sure to include them. What’s Next?

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Boston's vibrant health tech scene is fueled by world-class accelerators and incubators, empowering startups to drive digital health, biotech, and life sciences breakthroughs. Here’s a look at some key players: MassChallenge HealthTech—This accelerator helps startups transform health solutions across digital and biotech. It connects entrepreneurs with resources and mentors to drive meaningful change. LabCentral – A coworking lab space offering shared resources and lab facilities, LabCentral supports biotech and health tech startups by providing them with an innovative, collaborative environment. #Pagliuca Harvard Life Lab – Located at Harvard, this incubator offers lab and office space to promising biotech and life sciences startups, helping them scale groundbreaking health tech solutions. Richi Entrepreneurs – With a global outlook, Richi Entrepreneurs offers a unique two-week immersion for international health tech startups, connecting them with Boston’s local mentors, investors, and industry leaders. Xontogeny – Specializing in life sciences, Xontogeny partners with early-stage health tech companies, providing strategic guidance and operational support to accelerate their journey from concept to market. These incubators and accelerators are not just nurturing innovation—they’re powering the next generation of health solutions! 🌟 #BostonHealthTech #InnovationEcosystem #Biotech #HealthTech #StartupAccelerators

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I’m optimistic about the potential of generative AI to reduce provider burnout and improve provider-patient interactions. However, that optimism is tempered by the data that indicates the technology is not quite ready yet. Bright Ventures is interested in digital health founders who understand the realities of provider-patient interactions, and the role technology can play in strengthening clinical outcomes. Which founders and teams are getting this right? Tag them in the comments below.

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Another Important article by Zachery Eanes in Axios Hey #RealEstate developers, MAYBE you should be investing into / sponsoring the #startup ecosystem to help more #Entrepreneurs get to scale so they need more LAB space. Yes we are the ones who make the introductions of the Entrepreneurs to the #investors to move the company forward. Give and TAKE https://lnkd.in/e6hDmTPj #Biotech #LifeSciences #NorthCarolina

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APPLICATIONS ARE OPEN for Healthworx Accelerator! Are you a healthcare entrepreneur of a pre-seed or seed stage company who wants to connect with payers and providers like CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield to further hone your product and business? Do you want to learn about all the best practices in procurement, data security, claims, contracting, and the other nitty gritty details that might make or break your business? This is the iteration of 1501 Health, and includes all of our best practices and lessons learned to support even more entrepreneurs! If you have questions, please reach out to Soo Jeon or any of our alumni who can share the transformation that's possible when you connect innovators with experts!

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𝗛𝘆𝗽𝗲 𝗖𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲: Last week, I had the privilege of speaking on the “Delivering the Future of Healthcare” panel at Black Opal Ventures' Brilliant Tomorrows Forum. (Photo in comments) Like all tech conferences these days, the conversation turned toward AI and the recent surge in LLMs. One of my favorite moments was the ice-breaker discussion on AI and its place on the cultural “hype meter.” When it was my turn, I had fun pointing out that AI is in a distant second place compared to the hype around IVF, reframing the conversation and spotlighting IVF’s place in the cultural conversation. I backed up my claim with key signals of growth and attention: • 𝗣𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁: 82% of Americans favor IVF (source: Gallup) • 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗜𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲: IVF was a top 10 talking point with both candidates.(AI not even mentioned) • 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘆 𝗠𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗺: In the last couple of months, new government mandates now give 12+ million people generous access to fertility treatments. • 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗦𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲: Our next President called himself the “Father of IVF.” • 𝗖𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲: The day after the forum, Netflix was releasing Joy, a film about the scientists behind the Nobel Prize-winning breakthrough of IVF. So to those who doubt the bright future and growth of IVF, I borrow and flip the sage wisdom of Public Enemy: Believe the Hype. *Shout out to my super smart co-panelists Katherine Saunders, MD FlyteHealth, Oliver Keown, MD Cleo Surgical, Aarti Ravikumar, MD, MBA Atlantic Health System, Anna Stevens, CPA, FHFMA Weaver. And again, special thanks to Tara Bishop MD, MPH and Eileen Tanghal for gathering us. #IVF #IVFAutomated #FertilityCare #HealthcareTechnology #Innovation #BiotechAdvancement

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