The Healthtech Podcast #416 Steve Roest from PocDoc: Is Point-of-Care Testing the Future of Preventative Health?
Sep 26, 2025
In this engaging discussion, Steve Roest, the co-founder and CEO of PocDoc, shares insights on revolutionizing health diagnostics with smartphone-based blood testing. He explains how PocDoc's technology can detect cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and kidney issues using a simple finger prick. Steve highlights the importance of scaling preventative health outside GP surgeries and the innovative strategies that led to high uptake rates among patients. With a focus on real-world needs and integration with NHS pathways, PocDoc aims to democratize health screening.
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Shazam And A Family Stroke Shaped Steve
- Steve describes his father suffering a stroke at 14 and later becoming the first CEO of Shazam, which influenced his entrepreneurial path.
- Early exposure to startups and VC culture shaped Steve's comfort with high-risk ventures and resilience.
Work Experience At Shazam Taught Timing
- Steve recounts doing work experience at Shazam and learning lessons about timing and platform fit for technology.
- He links Shazam's later success to the iPhone enabling a vastly improved user experience and distribution.
Funding Bias Skews Medtech Innovation
- Medtech needs substantial external capital due to long regulatory timelines and fixed costs.
- That capital flow favors university spinouts and high-risk academic research, leaving practical rapid-testing underfunded.