How We Chose
We tracked funding rounds, company-reported growth figures, and launches between September 22 and October 27, 2026 and kept founders and chief executives of the companies involved, favoring first-time and less-known founders. Entries are in alphabetical order by last name.
Healthcare Founders to Watch (November 2026)
| # | Name | Company | Why now |
|---|
| 1 | Cameron Andrews | Sirona Medical | $40M Series D, Oct 15 |
| 2 | Rachel Blank | Allara Health | $30M round, Oct 13 |
| 3 | Nizan Friedman | Tenovi | $20M Series B, closed Oct 16 |
| 4 | Ben Hackett | Basalt Health | $20M Series A, Sep 24 |
| 5 | Josiah Meyer | Healthleap | $38M seed and Series A, reported Oct 7 |
| 6 | Havi Nguyen | Abby Care | $82M Series C, October |
| 7 | Jung Park | Parakeet Health | $10M Series A, Oct 1 |
| 8 | Cheryl Sew Hoy | Tiny Health | $33M Series B, Sep 29 |
| 9 | Veeraj Shah | Vitalize | $31M Series A, Oct 6 |
| 10 | Edward Tiong | Readily | $11M Series A, Oct 13 |
$40MSirona's Series D
1. Cameron Andrews
Founder and President, Sirona Medical
- Company
- Sirona Medical
- Why now
- Sirona announced a $40 million Series D on October 15, 2026.
Andrews was born into a family of radiologists; his grandfather founded the practice that became RAYUS Radiology. He studied biology and computer science at Stanford, spent three years at Lux Capital, and founded Sirona in 2018 at 25 to rebuild radiology software as one cloud platform.
Why now
Sirona says usage and annual recurring revenue grew more than 2.5 times, and the round funds its operating plan indefinitely. The next step is an international program before the end of 2026, and contracted volume will take time to show up as revenue.
Cameron Andrews profileSirona Medical review
$30MNew funding for Allara
2. Rachel Blank
Founder and CEO, Allara Health
- Company
- Allara Health
- Why now
- Allara announced $30 million in new funding on October 13, 2026.
Blank was diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome in her 20s after about three years of tests, then worked as an investor at General Catalyst and as director of strategy at Ro. She started Allara in 2020 from her apartment, paying women with PCOS $20 to talk about their care.
Why now
Allara says it has cared for more than 120,000 women, and the round brings its total funding to $75 million, according to the company. Its outcome figures still come from its own patient data.
Rachel Blank profileAllara Health review
$20MTenovi's Series B
3. Nizan Friedman
Co-founder and CEO, Tenovi
- Company
- Tenovi
- Why now
- Tenovi announced a $20 million Series B on October 20, 2026.
Friedman earned a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering at the University of California, Irvine, where he met co-founder Dan Zondervan. The pair built MusicGlove, a rehab device for stroke survivors, and ran Flint Rehab before founding Tenovi in 2020.
Why now
Tenovi reports more than 500,000 devices deployed and 319,000 patients served, according to its announcement. The round is nearly five times its 2023 Series A, and Tenovi plans to move into new disease areas.
Nizan Friedman profileTenovi review
86%Cut in referral processing time at Lifepoint Health
4. Ben Hackett
Founder and CEO, Basalt Health
- Company
- Basalt Health
- Why now
- Basalt announced a $20 million Series A on September 24, 2026.
Hackett spent nearly a decade as a product leader at Accolade, and he grew up with a mother and grandmother who were nurses. He founded Basalt in 2024 to speed up how rehab and skilled nursing facilities review the referral packets hospitals send them.
Why now
NEA led the round, and Basalt is being rolled out to 111 Lifepoint and ScionHealth markets by the end of 2026, according to its announcement. Results so far come mostly from those two health systems.
Ben Hackett profileBasalt Health review
50+Hospitals using Healthleap, up from three a year earlier
5. Josiah Meyer
Co-founder and CEO, Healthleap
- Company
- Healthleap
- Why now
- TechCrunch reported $38 million in funding on October 7, 2026.
Meyer grew up in South Africa, ran his first businesses as a teenager, and studied actuarial science and machine learning. He built Healthleap with his sister, dietitian Jemima Meyer, starting with AI that spots hospital patients who may be malnourished.
Why now
Meyer told TechCrunch that revenue grew more than 10 times in a year, a figure the company has not broken out further. Healthleap plans to cover more than 40 conditions and move into outpatient and home care.
Josiah Meyer profileHealthleap review
5xGrowth in patient census since Abby Care's Series B
6. Havi Nguyen
Founder and CEO, Abby Care
- Company
- Abby Care
- Why now
- Abby Care announced an $82 million Series C in October 2026.
Nguyen grew up in Baytown, Texas, the eldest daughter of Vietnamese immigrants who ran a nail salon, and handled her family's Medicaid paperwork from a young age. She built Abby Care to train and pay family members who care for relatives at home, according to Forbes Vietnam.
Why now
Forbes reported $15 million in revenue in 2025, and Transformation Capital led the new round, according to the announcement. Her next challenge is policy: Abby Care's revenue depends on state Medicaid rates for family caregivers.
Havi Nguyen profileAbby Care review
10xGrowth in Parakeet's annual recurring revenue in a year
7. Jung Park
Co-founder and CEO, Parakeet Health
- Company
- Parakeet Health
- Why now
- Parakeet announced a $10 million Series A on October 1, 2026.
Park spent more than 25 years running operations, data, and technology inside healthcare companies, including Epocrates and One Medical, both of which went public. He later served as chief information officer of a dermatology group, the specialty Parakeet now sells to first.
Why now
Parakeet says it serves six of the 10 largest U.S. dermatology groups, according to its announcement. Moving into other specialties will test whether his dermatology playbook travels.
Jung Park profileParakeet Health review
$33MTiny Health's Series B
8. Cheryl Sew Hoy
Founder and CEO, Tiny Health
- Company
- Tiny Health
- Why now
- Tiny Health announced a $33 million Series B on September 29, 2026.
Sew Hoy, a Cornell-trained engineer and mother of three, started Tiny Health after her daughter's eczema and food sensitivities led her into research on the infant gut. She had earlier founded Reclip.It, a shopping startup.
Why now
Sew Hoy told Crunchbase News that revenue has more than doubled each year and that Tiny Health has served nearly 200,000 customers. The company still sells to families who pay out of pocket.
Cheryl Sew Hoy profileTiny Health review
$31MVitalize's Series A
9. Veeraj Shah
Co-founder and CEO, Vitalize
- Company
- Vitalize
- Why now
- Vitalize announced a $31 million Series A on October 6, 2026.
Shah studied neurobiology and health policy at the University of Maryland and started Vitalize as a student with Sanketh Andhavarapu. He left a Gates Cambridge Scholarship Ph.D. program at the University of Cambridge to run it.
Why now
Oak HC/FT led the round, and a St. Luke's Health executive said Vitalize cut premium labor spend 54% in 12 weeks, according to the announcement. That result comes from one customer.
Veeraj Shah profileVitalize review
$11MReadily's Series A
10. Edward Tiong
Co-founder and CEO, Readily
- Company
- Readily
- Why now
- Readily announced an $11 million Series A on October 13, 2026.
Tiong studied AI at the University of California, Berkeley, and worked in AI at Microsoft before starting Readily, which went through Y Combinator, according to its YC profile.
Why now
Define Ventures led the round, and L.A. Care Health Plan is a named customer, according to the announcement. Readily is still early, and its broader oversight product is not yet on the market.
Edward Tiong profileReadily review
What to Watch Next Month
- Sirona's international program. Cameron Andrews plans an international program for Sirona before the end of 2026.
- Basalt's network rollout. Ben Hackett's Basalt is due to reach 111 Lifepoint and ScionHealth markets by the end of 2026.
- Healthleap's new conditions. Josiah Meyer's Healthleap is validating programs beyond malnutrition on its way to more than 40 conditions.
The Healthcare Founders to Watch list is updated monthly. This is the first edition. Past editions will be linked here, and every HIR list and report is in our research library.
