Sonia Arrison

🧬 This week’s Austin Bio & Health Roundup has funding, recognition, regional momentum, & new PitchBook healthtech data giving us a peek under the hood of the sector. 🧬 💰 Funding & Capital Signals Hello Patient, a conversational AI platform for clinics, closed a $22.5M Series A led by Scale Venture Partners and included participation from Austin-based 8VC, who also joined their seed round. You need to check out their announcement video. Alex is in top form! 🚀 Launches, Expansions, Milestones, and Wins A second piece of Hello Patient news. They launched their platform into veterinary practices as well. 📊 Data PitchBook published an Emerging Tech Research report on Healthtech VC Trends. In 1H 2025, healthtech startups raised $8B, putting it on pace to beat 2023 and 2024 and possibly 2022. Exits are at $4.9B, suggesting this could be the highest year since 2021. Top 5 subsectors over the last 12 months: • Telehealth: $3.2B over 174 deals • EHRs & Clinical Information and Analytics: $2.2B over 76 deals • Care Management: $2.2B over 113 deals • Operations: $1.7B over 84 deals • Analytics: $1.4B over 104 deals 🏆 Recognition Phantom Neuro featured in "25 Healthcare Devices I Fell in Love With" on David Shulkin’s blog. Shulkin is the former U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs. 🤠 Texas Bio Triangle Houston: The Rice Biotech Launch Pad announced another investment, this time from Houston-based Carnrite Ventures. Houston funding Houston! What’s Next? 🤠 🚀 🦾 🧬

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Cohere Health’s Series C: Case Study… McKinsey estimates that there is nearly $1 trillion of healthcare administrative expenses each year, of which $200 billion is just on financial transactions. There are a staggering nine billion medical claims processed each year. A hornet’s nest of policies and procedures have evolved to manage these expenses from complex formularies, deductibles, co-pays, and prior authorizations (PA). Just in 2023, there were over 50 million PAs, 99% of which were for procedures for Medicare Advantage members. It was this market opportunity that Cohere Health was created to address. The vision of the company has always been to drive deeper payer/provider collaboration and in so doing create a “touchless authorization” business model. The company has successfully commercialized a suite of next-generation PA products that significantly rearchitect the way care pathways are delivered. Recent advances in AI have further catalyzed a drive to meaningfully improve clinical and administrative efficiencies for payers. In order to continue its rapid scaling and development of additional products, Cohere Health today announced a $90 million Series C financing, led by Temasek, a close partner of Flare Capital. Other thoughts/observations... https://lnkd.in/eAB-JvUp Flare Capital Partners

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How did a small city like the City of Corona become a surprising innovation hub for AI? In our latest GovAI podcast, I sat down with Chris McMasters, CIO of Corona, California. After nearly two decades in the private sector, Chris made the leap into government—driven by a sense of purpose to serve. Our conversation tackled a big question: why does government often lag in adopting new technologies like AI? Chris explained it’s not about chasing the latest tech—it’s about protecting the people they serve and ensuring any new tool actually makes a difference. The key? Build trust first, then show—not tell—how technology can help. Chris believes AI won’t replace people—it’ll free them to focus on what humans do best. His vision: a future where city services are as seamless as ordering from Amazon, with AI agents removing the red tape. For anyone working in GovTech, or trying to break in, you'll learn a lot from this conversation. 🔗 Check it out here: https://lnkd.in/dzNed-ZP or listen here: https://lnkd.in/dhpwW_-8

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According to Crunchbase, women-only founding teams received less than 2% of global venture funding. Yet across sectors, women-led companies continue to outperform on ROI. At DFX, we meet hundreds of founders each month. Innovation scales faster when capital reaches diverse hands. Always tracking investors actually funding women-led innovation. I found a list from Ivelina Dineva, funds actively writing checks for female founders across AI, Fintech, Climate, Health, and beyond. Here are funds worth keeping on your radar: 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Operator Collective 🔆 ◾Mallun Yen- Founder & MP ◾Dana Marohn & Haley Brannan - Partner ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: B2B / Enterprise (operator-LP model) ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: SF, California 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Amplifyher Ventures ◾Tricia Black - Founder & GP ◾Meghan Cross - Partner ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Commerce, Care, Connectivity ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: NY 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: FreshTracks Capital ◾Lee Bouyea & George Whalen III- GP & Managing Director ◾Cairn Cross - Co-founder & Managing Director ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Tech, Consumer Products, Clean Energy, Advanced Manufacturing, Health/Wellness ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Shelburne, Vermont 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: 1843 Capital ◾Tracy Chadwell - Founding Partner ◾Gwen Weiss - Partner & CFO ◾Sharon Rodriguez - VP ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: AgeTech/Longevity (Health), plus selective tech/fin sectors ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Greenwich, Connecticut 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: CapitalT ◾Janneke Niessen & Eva De Mol Ph.D - Founding Partner ◾Corinne Vigreux - Cornerstone Investor ◾𝗦��𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Climate Tech, Future of Work ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Amsterdam 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Precursor Ventures ◾Charles Hudson - MP ◾Ashtan Jordan & Marina Girgis- Principal ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀:  Life Sciences, Healthcare ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: SF, California 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Epic Angels ◾Maaike Doyer - Founder ◾Hester Spiegel-vdSteenhoven - Partner ◾Andrea Davidson - Investment Comittee ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀:  All Sectors ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Singapore 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Capita3 ◾Pamela York & Sara Russick - Co-founder & MP ◾Kathy Tune - MP ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Healthtech, Deeptech, B2C, B2B ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: MPLS 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Conscious Venture Partners ◾Jeff Cherry - CEO Managing GP ◾Joseph W. & John Key - GP ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Healthtech, Sustainability, Impact Investing ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Maryland(Baltimore) 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: G9 Ventures ◾Amy Griffin - Founder & MP ◾Anna Doherty - Partner ◾Elena Rodriguez-Villa - Chief of Staff ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Healthtech ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: NY The future doesn’t just need more female founders, it needs investors who bet on them early. Hosting an invite-only B2B AI & Fintech Pitch Session this month. Upload your deal or join the conversation at joindfx.com. Use code ELLA for one month free. If you’re a woman founder, don’t miss our Female Founder Circle (check comments). #PrivateCapital #VC #PE #Founders #Community #Startups

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🔥🔥 PANEL ALERT 🔥🔥 What gaps may AI fill with the recent policy impacts on Medicaid?  Coyote Ventures 2025 Health Equity Innovators Fall Gathering will feature an expert panel discussing the impact of AI in Healthcare with a particular focus on its implications for Medicaid and Medi-Cal. As we are past the mid-point mark of 2025, AI and OBBBA are reshaping U.S. health policy in profound ways, from expansive new federal and state guidelines to sharp debates around oversight and authority. Our discussion will dive into the themes of bias, equity, and accountability in AI, and what these evolving mandates mean for those developing, deploying, or relying on AI-driven solutions in healthcare. With Medicaid and Medi-Cal covering some of our most vulnerable populations, the stakes couldn’t be higher. I’m looking forward to an engaging conversation with Priyanka Vaidya, Pooja Mittal, and Stella Tran - exploring how we can ensure AI not only advances innovation but also builds trust, fairness, and better outcomes. Curious to hear your thoughts: can AI truly help reduce disparities in Medicaid care, or will it deepen them?

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I had the opportunity to speak to the CEOs of the startups funded by Shift4Good, which is investing in sustainable transportation. In full disclosure, I chair their impact committee. I argued that firms should think about scaling deep (building stronger relationships in existing communities), rather than simply thinking about scaling fast (wide geographical spread). Research by Suntae Kim and Anna Kim shows that scaling deep can build resilient organizations and communities. The standard Silicon Valley orthodoxy is to scale up and fast, which arises often because of investor pressures. Many people do not question this orthodoxy, and yet it comes at a cost. There are numerous firms that sit in a graveyard of companies that scaled too fast and failed. I could sense the skepticism from many of the CEOs. Yet, one CEO and cofounder, Sriram Kannan, of Routematic agreed with me. I had the privilege to talk to him again and he was able to articulate so clearly how the scaling deep model works, partly by contrasting how scaling deep model of Routematic contrasts to the scaling up model of Uber. The fundamental principles of scaling deep are: 1. Grow organically from profits, not from investor cash 2. Master one market before opening up others 3. Focus on relationships, not transactions I think my biggest epiphany was that scaling deep does not mean slow growth or weak profits. Routematic has been able to achieve 8-10% month-over-month growth in revenues and has largely been profitable since it began offering its transportation services. Uber took almost 15 years to be profitable. I captured these ideas in the Forbes article I posted today, which was fun to write and taught me a lot. This is one of the many ideas I am exploring to see how systems thinking is encouraging a different way of thinking--where businesses can contribute to and benefit from stronger communities and a natural environment. As always, I welcome your reactions and provocations. Ivey Business School at Western University, Innovation North, Network for Business Sustainability (NBS), Kavitha Ramachandragowda, Ameya Uchil, Sebastien Guillaud, Thierry de Panafieu, #systemsthinking, #ScalingStrategy #SustainableGrowth #StartupStrategy #ProfitableGrowth #Entrepreneurship #Leadership #ImpactInvesting #SustainableTransportation https://lnkd.in/gM74UmYM

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