Technology

Midi creates a digital platform for the often overlooked area of women’s health

Published

7 months ago

May 1, 2024

IAM

When Joanna Strober was about 47 years old, she stopped sleeping. Although sleep loss is a common symptom of perimenopause, she first needed to go to multiple doctors, similar to driving 45 minutes from San Francisco to pay $750 out of pocket, to get a diagnosis and appropriate treatment.

“That feeling of ‘wow, I’ve really suffered unnecessarily over the last year’ really stuck with me,” Strober said in a recent episode of Podcast Found on TechCrunch. “I started talking to all my friends and trying to understand what was happening to them, and it became clear that perimenopause and menopause were serious. This hits women like a pile of bricks. It has many different symptoms and very few providers are trained to care for this population.”

This realization inspired Strober to launch Midi Health, a telehealth platform designed to serve midlife women by connecting them with healthcare providers trained in the symptoms and coverings of perimenopause and menopause.

Despite her “aha” moment, Strober explained why she couldn’t launch her startup instantly. She said Midi would not have existed if the U.S. government hadn’t modified regulations around telehealth and access to care during the pandemic. Strober said that because of changes in digital health, the company was capable of launch a platform that gives women with care as a substitute of having to depend on in-person care.

“It was a very exciting discovery to understand that this problem, which has existed for a long time, could finally be solved through telehealth,” Strober said. “And that’s why I wanted to start this company.”

Strober said Midi operates a little in another way than many other digital health firms which have sprung up in the wake of the pandemic. She said Midi was not created as a digital avenue through which users could get one-off care or treatment as quickly as possible, like many other firms of the same era, but relatively as a platform where women built long-term relationships with women. suppliers who make them feel noticed.

This approach can also be why Strober believes Midi has been capable of proceed to grow and lift VC funding as VCs have lost interest in the category. The company recently raised a $60 million B round led by Emerson Collective, with participation from Google Ventures, SteelSky Ventures and Muse Capital, amongst others. This round brings the company’s total funding to $99 million.

According to. digital health startups raised $13.2 billion globally in 2023 CB Insights data. This represents a decline of 48% in comparison with 2022, to $25.5 billion, and a decline of 75% in comparison with 2021, when a record amount of $52.7 billion was invested.

“I think too few telehealth companies haven’t thought about long-term customer relationships,” Strober said. “We see ourselves as constructing a trustworthy brand in the healthcare industry. Our brand is due to this fact skilled women’s care. We have to offer you such amazing care that you’ll come back to us repeatedly. That’s what women do.”

Midi shouldn’t be Strober’s first digital health startup, and she or he shared how her past experience constructing Kurbo Health, a startup focused on childhood obesity before digital health even existed, influenced her decisions to construct Midi. She also shared how her previous life as a enterprise capitalist also played a role in her approach to business.

With this latest round of funding, Midi looks forward to expanding care in areas covered by perimenopause and menopause, including sexual well-being, hair and skincare, and testosterone access.

“People keep asking, when do you get out of perimenopause and menopause?” Strober said. “But perimenopause and menopause are a big market. So we’re working a lot to understand what women’s health needs are at this time in their lives and how we can address those concerns appropriately.”

This article was originally published on : techcrunch.com

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Technology

Revolut will introduce mortgage loans, smart ATMs and business lending products

Published

2 hours ago

November 22, 2024

IAM

Revolutthe London-based fintech unicorn shared several elements of the corporate’s 2025 roadmap at a company event in London on Friday. One of the corporate’s important goals for next yr will be to introduce an AI-enabled assistant that will help its 50 million customers navigate financial apps, manage money and customize software.

Considering that artificial intelligence is at the middle of everyone’s attention, this move shouldn’t be surprising. But an AI assistant could actually help differentiate Revolut from traditional banking services, which have been slower to adapt to latest technologies.

When Revolut launched its app almost 10 years ago, many individuals discovered the concept of debit cards with real-time payment notifications. Users may lock the cardboard from the app.

Many banks now can help you control your card using your phone. However, they’re unlikely to supply AI features that might be useful yet.

In addition to the AI assistant, Revolut announced that it will introduce branded ATMs to the market. These will end in money being spent (obviously), but in addition cards – which could encourage latest sign-ups.

Revolut said it plans so as to add facial recognition features to its ATMs in the longer term, which could help with authentication without using the same old card and PIN protocol. It will be interesting to see the way it implements this technology in a way that complies with European Union data protection regulations, which require explicit consent to make use of biometric data for identification purposes.

According to the corporate, Revolut ATMs will start appearing in Spain in early 2025.

Revolut has had a banking license in Europe for a while, which implies it may offer lending products to its retail customers. It already offers bank cards and personal loans in some countries.

Now the corporate plans to expand into mortgage loans – some of the popular lending products in Europe – with an emphasis on speed. If it’s an easy request, customers should generally expect immediate approval and a final offer inside one business day. However, mortgages are rarely easy, so it will be interesting to see if Revolut overpromises.

It appears that the mortgage market rollout will be slow. Revolut said it was starting in Lithuania, with Ireland and France expected to follow suit. Although all these premieres are scheduled for 2025.

Finally, Revolut intends to expand its business offering in Europe with its first loan products and savings accounts. In the payments space, it will enable business customers to supply “buy now, pay later” payment options.

Revolut will introduce Revolut kiosks with biometric payments especially for restaurants and stores.

If all these features seem overwhelming, it’s because Revolut is consistently committed to product development, rolling out latest features quickly. And 2025 looks no different.

This article was originally published on : techcrunch.com

Technology

Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal is leaving PhonePe’s board

Published

9 hours ago

November 22, 2024

IAM

Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal has stepped down three-quarters from PhonePe’s board after making an identical move on the e-commerce giant.

Bengaluru-based PhonePe said it has appointed Manish Sabharwal, executive director at recruitment and human resources firm Teamlease, as an independent director and chairman of the audit committee.

Bansal played a key role in Flipkart’s acquisition of PhonePe in 2016 and has since served on the fintech’s board. The Walmart-backed startup, which operates India’s hottest mobile payment app, spun off from Flipkart in 2022 and was valued at $12 billion in funding rounds that raised about $850 million last 12 months.

Bansal still holds about 1% of PhonePe. Neither party explained why they were leaving the board.

“I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Binny Bansal for being one of the first and staunchest supporters of PhonePe,” Sameer Nigam, co-founder and CEO of PhonePe, said in a press release. His lively involvement, strategic advice and private mentoring have profoundly enriched our discussions. We will miss Binny!”

This article was originally published on : techcrunch.com

Technology

The company is currently developing washing machines for humans

Published

16 hours ago

November 22, 2024

IAM

Forget about cold baths. Washing machines for people may soon be a brand new solution.

According to at least one Japanese the oldest newspapersOsaka-based shower head maker Science has developed a cockpit-shaped device that fills with water when a bather sits on a seat in the center and measures an individual’s heart rate and other biological data using sensors to make sure the temperature is good. “It also projects images onto the inside of the transparent cover to make the person feel refreshed,” the power says.

The device, dubbed “Mirai Ningen Sentakuki” (the human washing machine of the longer term), may never go on sale. Indeed, for now the company’s plans are limited to the Osaka trade fair in April, where as much as eight people will have the option to experience a 15-minute “wash and dry” every day after first booking.

Apparently a version for home use is within the works.

This article was originally published on : techcrunch.com