Most healthcare AI conversations start and end with documentation. StartUp Health community member Mehmet Kazgan, CEO & Founder of cliexa, thinks that is the wrong place to focus.

In this episode of StartUp Health NOW, Kazgan joins Unity Stoakes for a deep dive into clinical reasoning, the intelligence layer that connects what a patient says, what a provider decides, and what a payer will cover, all in real time. Kazgan traces the evolution of healthcare technology from EMRs to interoperability to AI scribes, and explains why none of those waves solve the core problem without a reasoning engine underneath. He shares what it took to build and validate that engine over eight years, what deploying it with Mayo Clinic Platform and Eating Recovery Center has revealed, and why the window for health systems to act is right now.

Are you ready to tell YOUR story? Members of our Health Moonshot Communities are leading startups with breakthrough technology-driven solutions for the world’s biggest health challenges. Exposure in StartUp Health Media to our global audience of investors and partners – including our podcast, newsletters, journal, and YouTube channel – is a benefit of our Health Moonshot Membership. If you’re mission-driven, collaborative, and ready to contribute as much as you gain, you might be the perfect fit.
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Food as medicine is having a moment, but for leaders like Richard Bennett of Epicured and Victor Penev of Edamam, this is not a passing trend. It is the long-building future of healthcare.

In this special highlight episode of StartUp Health NOW, Unity Stoakes brings together two conversations from members of the StartUp Health community on the growing role of nutrition in prevention, chronic disease management, and whole-person care.

First, Richard Bennett, CEO & Co-founder of Epicured, joins Logan Plaster to talk about why food is emerging as a powerful front door to trust, engagement, and better outcomes. He shares how Epicured is helping bridge healthcare and nutrition, why reimbursement is a game changer, and how culturally relevant meals can support more human-centered care.

Then, Unity sits down with Victor Penev, CEO & Founder of Edamam, to explore how AI and food data are reshaping what personalized nutrition can look like. From meal-planning agents to virtual nutrition support, Victor explains why this moment feels like an inflection point for the Food as Medicine movement, and why data remains the foundation for what comes next.

Together, these conversations highlight a major shift in healthcare: food is no longer peripheral to care. It is increasingly central to prevention, treatment, and the future of personalized health.

Are you ready to tell YOUR story? Members of our Health Moonshot Communities are leading startups with breakthrough technology-driven solutions for the world’s biggest health challenges. Exposure in StartUp Health Media to our global audience of investors and partners – including our podcast, newsletters, journal, and YouTube channel – is a benefit of our Health Moonshot Membership. If you’re mission-driven, collaborative, and ready to contribute as much as you gain, you might be the perfect fit.
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Ian Madom, MD, orthopedic spine surgeon and co-founder of Mocingbird, joins us on StartUp Health NOW to discuss how administrative friction quietly limits healthcare access and clinician capacity.

Drawing from his own experience in practice, Dr. Madom explains how state-by-state licensing, certification timelines, and compliance requirements create unnecessary drag for clinicians and administrators alike. He shares how Mocingbird helps organizations manage licensing end to end, why multistate practice is essential in a post-COVID, telehealth-driven world, and how thoughtful use of AI can support, not replace, human judgment. He also reflects on the doctorpreneur journey and the role the StartUp Health community has played in Mocingbird’s evolution.

Are you ready to tell YOUR story? Members of our Health Moonshot Communities are leading startups with breakthrough technology-driven solutions for the world’s biggest health challenges. Exposure in StartUp Health Media to our global audience of investors and partners – including our podcast, newsletters, journal, and YouTube channel – is a benefit of our Health Moonshot Membership. If you’re mission-driven, collaborative, and ready to contribute as much as you gain, you might be the perfect fit.
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In this Health Moonshot Update, StartUp Health community member Justin Ayars of EqualityMD explains how the company is redefining employer healthcare through a pre-insurance model designed to resolve health needs before insurance is triggered.

EqualityMD delivers culturally competent virtual primary care, mental health support, urgent care, and prescription access without generating insurance claims. New research shows the platform can resolve up to 80 percent of employees’ diverse health needs pre-insurance, saving employers 20 to 30 percent in health claim and administrative costs and reducing employees’ out-of-pocket expenses by 40 to 70 percent.

Ayars shares why traditional telehealth often increases claims volume, how claim prevention changes the cost equation, and why rethinking healthcare upstream may be key to rebuilding trust and affordability in the system.

Are you ready to tell YOUR story? Members of our Health Moonshot Communities are leading startups with breakthrough technology-driven solutions for the world’s biggest health challenges. Exposure in StartUp Health Media to our global audience of investors and partners – including our podcast, newsletters, journal, and YouTube channel – is a benefit of our Health Moonshot Membership. If you’re mission-driven, collaborative, and ready to contribute as much as you gain, you might be the perfect fit.
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StartUp Health community member Richard Hanbury of Sana Health joined Unity Stoakes for a Health Moonshot Update just prior to achieving a major regulatory milestone: an FDA De Novo grant for neuropathic pain, establishing a new class of audio-visual neuromodulation.

Hanbury reflects on decades of neuromodulation research, shares why credibility in healthcare is built “one rung at a time,” and explains how Sana’s pivotal data demonstrated a significant reduction in pharmacologic dependence. The conversation also covers DoD-backed PTSD research, VA trials, international expansion in Israel, and why the future of pain and mental healthcare must move toward multimodal, scalable models of care.

Are you ready to tell YOUR story? Members of our Health Moonshot Communities are leading startups with breakthrough technology-driven solutions for the world’s biggest health challenges. Exposure in StartUp Health Media to our global audience of investors and partners – including our podcast, newsletters, journal, and YouTube channel – is a benefit of our Health Moonshot Membership. If you’re mission-driven, collaborative, and ready to contribute as much as you gain, you might be the perfect fit.
» Learn more and join today.

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In this Apollo House 2026 fireside chat, StartUp Health community member Sami Inkinen, CEO & Founder of Virta Health, shares how a personal diagnosis of pre-diabetes led him to build one of the fastest-growing companies in metabolic health.

Virta Health is proving that Type 2 diabetes and obesity can be reversed with nutrition, supported by technology and AI. Inkinen discusses how Virta has built one of the largest longitudinal biomarker datasets in metabolic disease reversal and is deploying AI agents, supervised by clinicians, to support patients every day.

He offers blunt insight into the current standard of care, explains why he believes disease reversal must become the common-sense approach, and shares how Virta became AI-native across every function, from hiring to board strategy.

This episode covers:

• The future of AI in healthcare operations and patient care
• Why food as therapy creates a complex, software-driven challenge
• The tension between GLP-1 drugs and root-cause treatment
• Scaling a B2B2C healthcare company to sustainability
• Advice for founders building in the age of AI

As a live recording, the audio reflects the energy of the room rather than a studio setting.

Do you want to participate in live conversations with industry luminaries? When you join StartUp Health – a private community for founders, investors, buyers, and industry leaders to connect year-round – you are invited to a full calendar of interactive Fireside Chats with the most influential leaders shaping health innovation. Come with questions, learn what is working right now, and connect with industry icons.
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Recorded live at Apollo House 2026, this fireside chat captures a candid, in-the-room conversation between StartUp Health’s Unity Stoakes and entrepreneur, investor, and technologist Vinod Khosla of Khosla Ventures on AI’s accelerating impact on healthcare.

Khosla explains why he believes AI is a platform shift larger than the internet or mobile, and how that shift could unlock access to high-quality care for billions. The conversation explores his “AI intern” model for healthcare, why copilots often underperform in complex clinical work, and why trust, supervision, and fit-for-purpose guardrails are essential. A live exchange with Esther Dyson adds perspective on empathy, communication, and the enduring human dimensions of care.

As a live recording, the audio reflects the energy of the room rather than a studio setting.

Do you want to participate in live conversations with industry luminaries? When you join the StartUp Health Network – a new private community for investors, buyers, and industry leaders to connect year-round with top health entrepreneurs – you are invited to a full calendar of interactive Fireside Chats with the most influential leaders shaping health innovation. Come with questions, learn what is working right now, and connect with industry icons.
» Learn more and join today.

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In this Health Moonshot Update, StartUp Health community member Christopher Jue of CAREgivers Insight joins Unity Stoakes to share how empowering caregivers can prevent crises and save the system money. Christopher draws on his own family experience and fresh pilot data to explain why caregivers should be treated as essential members of the care team.

In this episode, they talk about:

• What four preventable hospitalizations taught him about the cost of underused caregiver insight

• How Caregiver Views turns everyday observations into clear, shareable trend lines

• Why pilots with Cancer Services of Midland achieved an 85% recommendation rate

• The strategic shift from a B2C mindset to payer and Medicare Advantage partners

• An AI roadmap that starts with summaries and moves toward real coaching for untrained caregivers

• How the Caregiving Health Moonshot is becoming a doorway into every Health Moonshot at StartUp Health

This is a must listen for anyone building in value-based care, supporting an aging population, or caring for a loved one at home.

Are you ready to tell YOUR story? Members of our Health Moonshot Communities are leading startups with breakthrough technology-driven solutions for the world’s biggest health challenges. Exposure in StartUp Health Media to our global audience of investors and partners – including our podcast, newsletters, magazine, and YouTube channel – is a benefit of our Health Moonshot PRO Membership. To schedule a call and see if you qualify to join and increase brand awareness through our multi-media storytelling efforts, submit our three-minute application. If you’re mission-driven, collaborative, and ready to contribute as much as you gain, you might be the perfect fit.
» Learn more and apply today.

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