a16z Bio + Health

Why will healthcare be the industry that benefits the most from AI? ⚡️ the leapfrog opportunity given lack of sunk cost bias due to low adoption of enterprise SaaS tools in the last 2 decades ⚡️ the existential supply-demand mismatch crisis ⚡️ the existence of regulatory rails for clinical AI ⚡️ the opportunity to disrupt ~$trillions of services TAM vs just the ~$billions of software TAM 📺 https://lnkd.in/gvApZMwU 📑 https://lnkd.in/gefi45X8 a16z Bio + Health Andreessen Horowitz

AI presents a massive opportunity for startups to revolutionize the healthcare industry. Julie Yoo explains how AI can: - Leapfrog outdated tech - Streamline manual workflows - Solve severe staffing shortages Read the full story here: https://lnkd.in/g2zhfDB5

How can we identify previously undiscovered druggable protein pockets to design novel small molecule drugs? Michael Crackower, Chief Scientific Officer at Ventus Therapeutics, and Jason Burch believe the secret lies with water. Ventus' ReSOLVE platform incorporates dynamic water modeling into molecular dynamics simulations empowering their expert drug hunters to find new targets and design better small molecule drugs. The approach has led to a rare accomplishment - 3 clinical trials initiated within one year. Recently, Mike and Jason joined Vineeta Agarwala, MD PhD, a16z general partner, to discuss how this technology works and its potential impact in our industry. Listen on Raising Health: https://lnkd.in/dR5t7fP2

Healthcare has lagged behind in adopting tech, making it ripe for a leapfrog opportunity. Unlike other industries bogged down by outdated software, healthcare can skip straight to the latest AI innovations. AI can scale clinical judgment beyond current staffing, addressing the critical shortage of skilled doctors and nurses. Plus, regulatory frameworks already in place mean only the most rigorous AI products make it to market, ensuring high standards and strong market positions. AI tools applied to healthcare can transform a ~$4 trillion market offering up immense opportunities for startups and innovation. Read more from a16z general partner, Julie Yoo: https://lnkd.in/g2zhfDB5

"AI for drug discovery can hit at all the inefficiencies in every step of the drug design process." - Surya Ganguli, a16z venture partner and Professor at Stanford University. Recently, Surya and Bowen Liu, a16z investment partner, joined Vijay Pande, PhD to go deep on AI in Bio. The trio dove into many aspects of AI in life sciences including the potential applications of self-supervised learning, which allows AI to learn from vast amounts of unlabelled data, drastically improving the prediction and design of new drugs. Listen on Raising Health: https://lnkd.in/dzjQ3Bux

The science and supply of GLP-1s are crucial in modern healthcare. Carolyn Bradner Jasik, MD recently joined Vijay Pande, PhD, a16z general partner, to discuss the advancements in GLP-1 research and its implications for treatment. Their conversation highlighted the importance of these developments in improving patient outcomes and the challenges in ensuring a steady supply. Listen on Raising Health: https://lnkd.in/g-z_jtP3

Congratulations to the team at IDRx! None of the above should be taken as investment advice or an advertisement for investment services; please see https://lnkd.in/gjmYWkHi for more information.

Cast your vote for Dr Sreekanth Chaguturu (CMO at CVS Health), Dr Calum MacRae (Director at One Brave Idea, and Vice Chair for Scientific Innovation, Department of Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital) and I to be on stage at SXSW to chat on "The Doctor is In (Your Device): What Medicine Will Be in 2050": https://lnkd.in/gUvjRvB2 Our healthcare and medical system still runs on data and insights from 50 years ago, based on a population that doesn’t look, think, or act anything like we do today. To imagine what it will be like in 2050, we have to rethink what it means to be a healthcare professional: providing always-on care powered by AI, prescribing drugs that treat untreatable illnesses, and caring for people who are more diverse than any time in our history. We'll discuss the road we’ve traveled and the highway we need to build to sustain a healthier America. a16z Bio + Health Andreessen Horowitz

Misguided policies can slow innovation and restrict patient access to treatments. John F. Crowley, President & CEO of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization, noted that regulations failing to consider the entire biotech ecosystem can lead to unintended consequences. In conversation with Jorge Conde, Crowley advocates for policies that support innovation and ensure access, always with a patient-centered approach. Listen on Raising Health: https://lnkd.in/g26nuCYX

Recently, Bruce Levine, Barbara and Edward Netter Professor in Cancer Gene Therapy at the University of Pennsylvania, joined Jorge Conde and Ginger Liau on Raising Health to discuss how CAR T therapy is expanding beyond oncology to treat autoimmune diseases, like lupus. By targeting B cells with CD19 CAR T cells, researchers have managed to "reset" the immune system in lupus patients. This success, among others, is encouraging further exploration of similar treatments for other autoimmune conditions. Listen on Raising Health: https://lnkd.in/eSHGv9kx