With a rise in generative AI products, it seems like new technology is announced every day that promises to change how healthcare is delivered.
John Beadle, co-founder and managing partner at health tech venture capital (VC) firm Aegis Ventures, chatted with Healthcare Brew to sort through the noise, discussing which areas of investment he’s most excited about and the industry’s unique challenges.
Since it opened in 2020, Aegis has co-founded and launched five companies that collectively raised $68 million in total. It most recently co-founded Avandra Imaging, which secured $17.5 million in Series A funding this February.
In 2024, funding for digital health startups in the US hit $10.1b in 497 deals, according to digital health strategy group and venture fund Rock Health.
Areas of interest
Beadle shared that Aegis spent the last year meeting with teams from the 11 health systems it works with—including California-based Stanford Health Care, New York-based Northwell Health, and Tennessee-based Vanderbilt Health—to see what their tech and AI priorities were.
This spurred the creation of five key themes for the VC firm to explore:
- Using AI to create “personalized care companions” and reimagine the patient experience
- Automating repeatable manual workflows, especially in the back office
- Creating new biomarkers for improved disease prediction
- Accelerating clinical trials with more real-world data
- Building a more “sustainable financial future” for health systems through partnerships
“We’ve been quite busy looking to really scale up our activities in the second half of this year,” Beadle said. “It’s looking like we’ll launch two to three new companies in the next couple of months.”
Future of health tech investment
Beadle said he anticipates generative AI will become “extraordinarily powerful” across the industry—from health systems to pharma to payers—with advancements in back office automation, prediction and prognosis, and medical devices and robotics.
The American Medical Association reported in February that 2 in 3 physicians were already using AI in 2024, according to its survey.
“Everything is transforming dramatically because we’ve spent decades and decades building a set of foundational technologies that have gotten us to this point, and they’re now converging in a really unique, exciting way,” Beadle said, adding that new tech will help save costs for health systems.
Navigate the healthcare industry
Healthcare Brew covers pharmaceutical developments, health startups, the latest tech, and how it impacts hospitals and providers to keep administrators and providers informed.
Research from the nonprofit National Bureau of Economic Research estimated AI adoption could save $200 billion to $360 billion each year in healthcare, based on the 2019 spend.
Though, Beadle added, this is his “optimistic picture.” There are still challenges to contend with, such as the lack of regulation on AI in the field and “harmful side effects that could result” from issues like hallucinations and bias.
Tariffs and regulations and budgets, oh my!
Of course, you can’t look into investment opportunities without considering the impact tariffs might have.
Beadle said Aegis has portfolio companies that have been impacted by tariffs. “It’s definitely led us to make decisions for things like if [companies] need to import medical devices before a big tariff deadline.”
CFO Brew reported tariffs could cost businesses across the US nearly $990 billion each year. Health techs leaders previously told Healthcare Brew investors were more reluctant to fund companies due to market instability and potentially rising costs.
Further, cuts to the National Institutes of Health grants, concerns about the 340B program, and anticipated cuts to Medicaid under the One Big Beautiful Bill “have created a really challenging environment for a lot of our provider partners,” he said.
Health insurers may also be affected, as the bill doesn’t extend enhanced premium tax credits for ACA marketplace health plans. As a result, NPR reported premiums are on track to rise (people who pay $60 a month now will pay $105 a month next year, according to the outlet) alongside an increasing uninsurance rate.
“We’re in an environment where margins are compressing, and because of that, folks are really focused on true painkillers that ideally can both increase revenue and decrease costs and drive very quick, tangible ROI,” he said.
Correction 07/24/2025: This story has been updated to clarify that not all of the funding for Avandra Imaging and the other companies mentioned came exclusively from Aegis Ventures.