Finding PMF in Healthcare (After Tasting it Elsewhere) with Eren Bali and Max Cohen
Jan 30, 2024
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Eren Bali, founder and CEO of Carbon Health, and Max Cohen, cofounder and CEO of Sprinter Health, discuss their experiences transitioning from tech to healthcare, finding product-market fit, tracking KPIs, and adapting to changes in the investor landscape. They reflect on the complexity of the healthcare industry, the challenges of addressing individual needs, and the advantages and opportunities for tech companies in healthcare
Understanding the healthcare industry and gaining credibility through deep study is crucial for non-healthcare tech entrepreneurs.
Building tech-enabled healthcare experiences requires a balance between in-house development and integration of third-party products for non-core functionalities.
Deep dives
Transitioning from Tech to Healthcare
Max Coet and Aaron Bali, CEOs of Sprinter Health and Carbon Health respectively, discuss their transition from the tech industry to healthcare. Despite lacking a healthcare background, they emphasize the importance of understanding the industry and gaining credibility through studying and deep understanding. Both CEOs highlight the challenges and surprises they encountered, such as the complexity of the payer landscape and the need for a balance between tech talent and domain expertise. They also discuss the advantages of building full-stack businesses in healthcare and the importance of differentiation, ROI, and cost-cutting in achieving product-market fit.
Building a Tech-Enabled Healthcare Experience
Max and Aaron share insights on their approach to building tech-enabled healthcare experiences. They discuss the need for innovative solutions in healthcare, particularly in areas like EHRs (Electronic Health Records) where existing software is often lacking. While they focus on building core components in-house, they also highlight the importance of integrating third-party products for non-core functionalities. The CEOs emphasize the significance of focusing on the total package and delivering value to partners by improving operations, cutting costs, and increasing efficiency.
Attracting Talent and Overcoming Challenges
Max and Aaron discuss the challenges and strategies for attracting top tech talent to the healthcare industry. They recognize the perception that healthcare has outdated software and is resistant to innovation. However, they highlight the value of domain expertise and the need for a balance between tech and healthcare professionals. Max emphasizes the importance of understanding the business of healthcare, while Aaron highlights the critical role of operations and non-tech roles in the industry. Both CEOs note the advantages of starting with a smaller team to find product-market fit and the importance of deployment speed and fast sales in healthcare.
Venture Capital and Growth Opportunities
The CEOs explore the venture capital landscape in healthcare and discuss the need for dedicated investors in the sector. They highlight the long lag between companies finding product-market fit and going public, making it challenging for early-stage healthcare companies to secure funding. However, they acknowledge the increasing interest and investment in digital health startups. While Aaron believes that strong technology solutions are needed for faster deployment and adoption, Max emphasizes the importance of adequate healthcare understanding and the unique challenges of healthcare infrastructure. They express optimism about the growth opportunities in healthcare and the potential for innovation and improvement in the industry.
Max Cohen, cofounder and CEO of Sprinter Health, and Eren Bali, founder and CEO of Carbon Health, join Julie Yoo, general partner at a16z Bio + Health.
Together, they talk about becoming healthcare entrepreneurs despite non-healthcare backgrounds and what they had to learn along the way. They also discuss finding product-market fit, how they track PMF using KPIs, and the evolving investor landscape as the digital health space expands and matures.