Funding for digital health startups and initiatives soared during the pandemic as entrepreneurs and consumers increasingly embraced telehealth, remote monitoring, and a suite of devices from sleep trackers to exercise bands.
Total venture capital investment in digital health hit an all-time high of $29.2B in 2021, according to Rock Health. Funding cooled in 2022, to $12.6B by the end of the third quarter, but advances in technology such as artificial intelligence and the increasing interest of big tech companies are sure to propel innovation in the future.
Seattle-area startups such as CalmWave, Rippl Care, Outbound AI, and Birch AI emerged in 2022 to help solve medical problems ranging from excess noise in hospitals, to mental healthcare for seniors. Larger companies also signaled major ambitions; Amazon this year announced its bid to acquire primary care company One Medical for $3.9 billion and rolled out a new online health service, Amazon Clinic.