Startup Stash - Say Goodbye To Free Social Media 👋

For decades, health care has been largely exempt from the rampant emergence of technology that has disrupted other industries. Come 2020, and the sector saw an unprecedented boom - more than making up for the glut of the past decade. Today, the new health market may be the single greatest business opportunity of our time. 

All thanks to digitisation. 

Startups have already started realising the potential of digital revolution in healthcare. They have created a demand for 24/7-health information through use of personalised apps and social networks that encourage “life logging” for consumers to track their health status in real time. 

Some of the latest digital innovations include:

• The digital pill, which has a small edible sensor, embedded in the medication that tracks compliance by pinging the clinical provider when the patient has consumed it.
• Smart contact lenses with built-in biosensors that can detect blood sugar levels from tears, to help diabetics and their doctors proactively adjust medications and improve outcomes.
• A new flexible digital sensor the size of a stamp that sticks to the body and continually monitors blood pressure without invasive equipment.

If ingesting a mechanical pill or wearing sensors on your corneas sounds scary, know that a significant majority of the world is already keen on accepting these innovations. People are more than happy to eat, wear or breathe any technology that allows remote tracking and big data analysis of their health. 

Here’s some stats to prove it:  

According to a survey conducted by Accenture on digital health, 

• Almost 35% of all healthcare consumers are using mobile or tablet applications to track their health.
• 73% said digital technology helps them engage in their own healthcare in partnership with their clinical provider.
• 57% said they were open to remote monitoring of ongoing health issues through at-home devices. 

With healthcare costs rising exponentially, with skilled labor shortages, and the aging baby boomer population putting increasing strain on our system of care, technology holds the promise to fix what’s breaking in our healthcare paradigm.

This young and scrappy entrepreneur sent an email to Mark Cuban and ended up getting a $1 million investment.
This is not a joke!

One drowsy evening, Greg Maselli, founder of SAVRpak - a startup that helps you keep takeout, packaged foods and produce fresh for a longer time - decided to take a long shot and email a “Shark Tank” like pitch to Mark Cuban (whom he had never spoken to before). A couple of hours later, he got a response that would make all of us strugglers question our luck. 

Not only did Greg get his dream investment, he also went on to document his process and learnings in a blog article for you to read and admire or get jealous or both.

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