People in the tech industry often say that data is the new oil, a phrase coined by British mathematician Clive Hamby that, of course, means that data is valuable.
Personal health data can also provide meaningful insights and improve treatment outcomes, but according to the World Economic Forum, only 3% of patient data is currently used by doctors. Doctors know they can glean useful information from patient data, but they don't have the time to review every detail in medical records.
Regard, a digital health startup founded in 2017, wants to help doctors save time and improve the accuracy of diagnoses by using AI to analyze patient health data.
Regard on Thursday announced it had raised $61 million in a Series B round led by OakHC/FT, with participation from Cedars-Sinai Health Ventures and existing investors TenOneTen, Calibrate Ventures and Techstars. The company is now valued at $350 million, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The company's software mines thousands of data points in medical records and presents the data in a way that makes it easier for doctors to detect health conditions.
“Doctors use our product so they can be sure that they're not missing anything important in their data,” Eli Ben-Joseph, co-founder and CEO of Regard, told TechCrunch. “Every physician we work with has a story of, 'I used your product and found something that changed the way I treat this patient.'”
Ben Joseph said Regard helped her GP detect atrial fibrillation (irregular heart rhythm) that had gone unnoticed by a cardiologist. “She now feels it is irresponsible not to use our product,” he said.
But it's not just doctors who see value in Regard: Hospital financial administrators are also big fans of Regard, says Ben Joseph, whose ability to identify new medical conditions creates new billing opportunities for the health care system.
The company is on track to grow revenue 4.5 times in 2023 and see “similar growth” this year, Ben Joseph said. The company expects to achieve profitability within the next two years.
Such rapid growth has investors excited.
“We really [Regard] “It has a direct impact on physician productivity, burnout, proper coding and clinical outcomes,” says Nancy Brown, general partner at Oak HC/FT.
Brown, a health care technology executive and investor with more than 30 years of experience, said he had always dreamed of computers providing insights from patient information. “That dream has been dashed. [over the years] “The lack of technology,” she says, is why, when she met Ben Joseph at a healthcare conference earlier this year, she immediately recognized Regard as the technology of her dreams.
Since launching its product in 2021, Regard has signed deals with a number of major health systems, including Banner Health, one of the largest health care providers in Arizona, Virginia-based Sentara Healthcare, Montefiore Medical Center in New York and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Details of the company's latest funding round were previously reported by Business Insider.
Ben Joseph said the company's competitors include Engage One, a product developed by multinational conglomerate 3M, and start-up Pieces.
Brown has no doubt that Regard is a leader in its field: “Regard is a great, profitable, fast-growing company that provides a solid return on investment (ROI) for its clients,” she said.