Nick Jonas, Chelsea Clinton, and Ashanti walk into a conference…
After a long week in Vegas clocking 20,000+ steps a day, we’ve recovered enough to share a few of our takes from all of the HLTH hoopla. The week kicked off with VC General Catalyst proclaiming its intent to buy a health system as a testing ground for innovation; Sutter Health also announced plans for a new innovation hub. Conversations were abuzz around the possibilities of generative AI, with the most traction so far in non-clinical use cases. GLP-1s were another hot topic with Noom announcing plans to sell weight loss solutions (including prescriptions) to employers. Another theme that emerged was food-as-medicine, including an announcement that Instacart groceries will be offered as a Medicare Advantage benefit.
Meanwhile, retail companies broadened their offerings: CVS announced plans for a new "super app" and Samsung partnered with b.well to provide longitudinal data and health nudges to Galaxy smartphone users, with additional plans to connect users to care at digitally-enabled providers like Walgreens (in-person or via the newly announced D2C virtual offering). Big pharma had a markedly large footprint this year, with stage presence from BMS, Lilly, GSK, Roche, and Takeda. That said, there was a decidedly less glitzy vibe overall (with a noticeable decline in stuffed animal swag in the exhibit hall)—a sign of the times with a renewed focus on profitability. As Bessemer Venture Partners' noted in their recent State of Health Tech report, "the bar is now higher to successfully raise funding." Whether you were there and are still exhausted, or have FOMO and are living vicariously through the recaps, we leave you with the seminal question of Tuesday night’s event—what’s luv? As for our experience at HLTH, we came away energized after swapping strategies and stories with 10,000 of our closest healthcare friends.
Headlines
Hospitals And Digital Health Companies: Making An Emulsion From Oil And Water
A new playbook from a16z on how to partner with health systems Healthcare Dive
Best Buy’s Latest Health Business: Glucose Monitoring Systems
BBY will sell prescription CGMs and deliver to customers' homes Forbes
FDA Launches New Digital Health Advisory Committee To Tackle Incoming Complexities
Nominations are now open for the new committee Endpoints News
Rite Aid, Facing Slumping Sales and Opioid Suits, Files for Bankruptcy
The Chapter 11 announcement comes with store closures and a new CEO The New York Times
Priming Beliefs About AI Can Increase Perceived Trustworthiness, Empathy And Effectiveness
The placebo effect influences how people experience AI chatbots Nature
Recent Funding
- Optimize Health nabs $18.5M for its remote monitoring and chronic care management software
- Arctop secures $10M to develop software to decode brain signals and translate cognition
- Healthtech intelligence tool and expertise marketplace MDisrupt seeds $3M
- Prevounce Health lands $2.5M for its preventative care and RPM compliance and billing solution
- Dental-focused clinic and member plan management solution Plan Forward grabs $2M