Parakeet Health, a generative AI company centered on enhancing patient engagement for healthcare providers, announced it has secured $3 million in seed funding.

The funding round was led by Canvas Ventures. StoryHouse Ventures as well as several leading investors participated in the round, including former One Medical Chief Executive Officer Dr. Tom Lee and former Twitter (now X) Chief Technology Officer Adam Messinger.

The company also announced the launch of its generative AI voice platform, designed to transform how healthcare providers handle patient communication at scale.

WHAT IT DOES

The San Francisco-based company develops voice agents to transform patient engagement and lower administrative burdens with the goal of driving higher revenue for providers. 

Its platform, powered by advanced large language model (LLM) technology, reinforces various patient-experience use cases by managing both inbound and outbound communications at scale.

The generative AI voice platform automates contact center tasks and other routine administrative duties using AI voice agents, available 24/7 and in various languages, to deal with both outbound and inbound patient communications via calls and texts. 

According to Parakeet Health, use cases include appointment scheduling, overseeing referrals, patient outreach, prescription status, labs, wellness visits, billing and payments, and answering FAQs.

The company plans to use the funds to grow its team, advance development of its technology, and grow by targeting health systems, multi-site medical practices and large senior primary care providers offered by Medicare Advantage plans.

"Our approach stands out because we’ve built it with a real understanding of the everyday challenges providers face," Jung Park, cofounder and CEO of Parakeet, told MobiHealthNews in an email.  

"Rather than just automating simple tasks, Parakeet helps providers and their staff reclaim valuable time by handling complex patient interactions," Park said. "Our voice AI agents go beyond standard automation, providing a reliable, 24/7 solution that adapts to both patient needs and operational workflows. This combination of flexibility and deep healthcare integration makes us an ideal tool for organizations aiming to reduce costs while enhancing patient experience and efficiency." 

MARKET SNAPSHOT

Other companies in this space include Opkit, which launched in 2023 with $1 million in funding. The startup participated in Y Combinator, a Silicon Valley accelerator program, and garnered investment from Global Founders Capital, Mischief, Socially Financed and Rex Salisbury.  

In August, the company announced its HIPAA-compliant, AI-powered software platform that automates back office phone calls for medical clinics. The platform handles outbound calls to payers for insurance verification, claims, prior authorization and calls to pharmacies for prescription verification and calls to collect medical records.  

Ambience Healthcare, which offers an AI operating system for healthcare organizations, announced in February a $70 million Series B funding round co-led by Kleiner Perkins and OpenAI Startup Fund. Existing investors Andreessen Horowitz and Optum Venture participated in the round. 

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