Latest / StartUp Health NOW Podcast / Living the Moonshot Mindset, with Lee Shapiro of 7wireVentures

Transcript

Living the Moonshot Mindset, with Lee Shapiro of 7wireVentures · StartUp Health NOW Podcast

• 0:00
  [ on-hold music] I love the moonshot approach because you need to have that moonshot mentality. Um, if, if you don't shoot for the moon, you may never reach the stars.
• 0:16
  And if you aim too low, you're gonna achieve things that are much closer in orbit than what you can do if you, if you shoot for the moon.
• 0:25
  [upbeat music] Welcome to Startup Health NOW, the podcast where we celebrate the entrepreneurs and innovators reimagining the future of health. I'm Logan Plaster.
• 0:35
  This week, we bring you a conversation between Unity Stokes, co-founder and president here at Startup Health, and a very special guest, longtime collaborator and friend, Lee Shapiro.
• 0:44
  Lee is a managing partner at Seven Wire Ventures, a leading health tech investment firm, but that's just one of the many hats he's worn in recent years. I'll let Unity give the full bio in a second.
• 0:56
  The conversation, which was held live at the Startup Health Festival in Miami, covers a range of topics from what Seven Wire Ventures looks for in a startup to how healthcare can learn from adjacent industries like gaming and banking.
• 1:09
  Lee Shapiro is one of those rare voices in the industry who can combine hard-earned operational experience with the health moonshot wisdom of a philosopher.
• 1:18
  He embodies the characteristics of tenacity and humility that he looks for in a startup founder, and he's just a pleasure to talk to. Enjoy the conversation. Kicking it off for us is Unity Stokes.
• 1:28
  [upbeat music] So Lee is, is I think one of the most legendary, uh, investors- Legendary means old. [laughs]... in, in, in the space now.
• 1:42
  Um, president, uh, former president of Allscripts, CFO during awesome Livongo era, um, and m- managing partner at Seven Wire. So we thought who better to be here.
• 1:54
  Plus, uh, an investor in our impact fund supporting our moonshots, so we're grateful for that. Um, but who better to talk with to really get a sense of the moment? Um, you've got decades of experience of
• 2:10
  health and health innovation and, and have learned so much. Then the, the pandemic era and now moving forward. Um, what's your sense of the moment and, and what have, what have you learned?
• 2:23
  Well, Unity, thanks so much for having me here. So great to see. I'm looking through lights at so many friends in the audience. And isn't it wonderful to be together again? Yes. Isn't it great?
• 2:34
  [audience applauding] And that is part of the defining moment, right, about coming together because it's so hard to think about health, especially in light of the challenges that we faced as a country, as a world, uh, with regard to health, without coming to appreciate the importance of what so many of you have worked on for so long in allowing us to find ways to bring health to more people, to meet them where they are, um, and to allow an opportunity for us to really create more possibilities for people to be healthy, and to do it in a way that's helping us to reduce costs, improve outcomes, and to change lives.
• 3:14
  And so thank you all for doing that and supporting it because this is an important change that I think occurred over the last few years, but is here with us to stay, and it's gonna continue to grow.
• 3:27
  You know, I, I think about, um, [lips smack] nineteen ninety-four,
• 3:32
  and I think about the Netscape IPO, and I've been saying this for, for a while, but I think about what you and Glenn a- and others did with Livongo, um, in terms of, of going public, um, as one of the, the real seminal digital health companies.
• 3:50
  It really, I think, was a defining moment for the whole ecosystem, for the whole sector. Um, [lips smack] you know,
• 3:59
  but Netscape ninety-four was so early, and think of what's happened in the innovation landscape with technology since nineteen ninety-four to now with Google and Facebook and iPhone and, and everything else.
• 4:13
  Um, [lips smack] what's your sense of, of how early we still are in terms of health innovation and, and what may be to come over, over the next few years in that regard? Well, thank you for mentioning Livongo.
• 4:28
  I think that out there somewhere, uh, Glenn Tullman is here. Glenn, wave. I think he's here, and Dr.
• 4:34
  Jennifer Schneider, who is so important in terms of the work we did at Livongo, John Halleck and others that were on the team to really help kind of create that moment that you referred to.
• 4:44
  And in some respects, um, what I think we've started to realize is that digital health isn't something that's separate or containerized. Um, it's all about how we deliver health.
• 4:58
  When you bank, and you bank with your phone, you don't think of it as mobile banking. Um, when was the last time anybody here went to see a teller at a bank? I'm looking for a show of hands.
• 5:08
  Not too many hands that I can see go up, right? And so when we think about the way healthcare is delivered, the technology that's enabling us to do the types of things that we're doing today,
• 5:20
  that was started by Livongo in terms of defining this new category of applied health signals, is enabling now-- us now to leverage information about ourselves, about our health, and to use it to guide us in a way that allows us to achieve better health.
• 5:36
  Um, in terms of where are we in this continuum, I think that we're still in an evolving landscape because the nature of some of these solutions had to live outside the boundaries of the existing healthcare ecosystem.
• 5:51
  And it's so great that we're doing this conference in, in concert with Chime, 'cause Chime represents so much of the ecosystem that exists for our health systems today.And recognizing that there are now bridges that have to be built between some of those current ecosystems to share data more responsively, um, and to do it in a way that allows us all to better manage our health is part of where we still have to get to.
• 6:16
  Mm. And
• 6:19
  there's a lot of entrepreneurs here, there's a lot of industry folks here, and I like that kind of balance, um, because there's the early stage builders and those that are trying to bring innovation into their, their business or their, their ecosystem.
• 6:35
  How... As you're making investments or looking to back new solutions or teams, entrepreneurs today, um, how have you recalibrated or how are you thinking about what you're looking for now?
• 6:49
  Well, what we're looking for now, and, and frankly what we've looked for for a long time, are, are founders that will tolerate us. Um, because we tend to get involved in terms of helping founders.
• 7:00
  It's an, an operating focus model. Um, and we're looking to help build companies that support all of us to become better informed and connected health consumers.
• 7:11
  And with that in mind, the types of founders that we look for are ones that, um, have tenacity, that are willing to, to learn, um, that have a level of humility about what it is they're doing, um, recognize that this is something you're gonna have to be persistent about because in this market, you're gonna learn a number of things.
• 7:32
  You're gonna try things that may not work. Being able to pivot and to learn from that and to be able to grow is, is really important.
• 7:39
  Um, and also when we think about the types of challenges that founders are solving, and I, I love the moonshot approach because you need to have that moonshot mentality.
• 7:50
  Um, if, if you don't shoot for the moon, you may never reach the stars, and if you aim too low, you're gonna achieve things that are much closer in orbit than what you can do if you, if you shoot for the moon.
• 8:02
  And so I'm, I'm really excited about the entrepreneurs that not only we've met, that are meeting here, but, um, other entrepreneurs that are really looking at trying to find ways to use technology to address the challenges we have.
• 8:16
  Um, I wouldn't be surprised if many of the entrepreneurs in this room, um, came to healthcare from other industries.
• 8:22
  Um, we're meeting a number of, of technologists that have worked in areas that have been focused on other great solutions we've used as consumers, and are now trying to bring that thinking to address what we're trying to achieve from a health and care standpoint, and that's a really important element of how the industry is chartered to change, by attracting new ideas, new innovations to address the challenges that we face here and globally.
• 8:48
  Are you meeting new types of entrepreneurs now that are coming from different disciplines, different sectors, different areas than maybe you, you saw 10, 20 years ago?
• 9:01
  What's, what's that like in terms of what you're seeing? Clear- clearly more...
• 9:04
  You know, things that used to be, um, really important, uh, literally just backstage was speaking with someone who had come from the gaming industry- Mm-hmm...
• 9:13
  um, and had been building consumer focused games and, and now we're directing those, how do you engage people and keep them active in their health and get people to do for their healthcare what they do on Candy Crush, right?
• 9:24
  And, and so are there things that we can be learning from those other sectors? I believe there is, um, and can use it in a way that really powers the types of things we're trying to do.
• 9:34
  The one, the one caveat that I'll mention is that, um, too often we meet entrepreneurs who believe, maybe rightfully so, that the types of things they're doing will improve healthcare, and therefore, it will just be used and deployed by doctors.
• 9:50
  Um, you really have to understand the ecosystem you're operating in and the way in which incentives are aligned in order to be able to make more progress here than maybe in a direct to consumer industry like gaming.
• 10:03
  So are you really focusing on, or how early are you focused on, like, the business model and knowing that that team really has that? I know you're s- primarily Series A with, with Seven Wire.
• 10:16
  We do even earlier with that, with our impact fund. Um, how important is really understanding those drivers of, of, of the business of, of what an entrepreneur is building? Yeah. Great, great question.
• 10:30
  We're seed and Series A, mostly Series A. Um, we recognize that the business model may still be in flux.
• 10:37
  We focus on a great team, and I think as founders, if you build a great team, if you start to think about how you define a category that you're gonna operate in, um, really understand the challenges that you're trying to face, do those listening tours, meet with clients,
• 10:54
  get an understanding of whether it's a consumer issue or you're solving a problem for someone else, a health plan, a self-insured employer, you really have to understand those challenges and bring that to the table.
• 11:05
  And then the business model will follow because you're gonna learn a lot about how that business model operates as you get into market and, and begin from the early stage that you fund, and oftentimes where we participate.
• 11:18
  I think that ability to learn and to build a trusted relationship with those that you're serving is also important.
• 11:25
  Um, when Glenn and I were in the electronic health record space, and there are probably some CIOs here who are still hunting for us, um, we had to, we had to build some really great trusted relationships 'cause the software didn't always work,
• 11:40
  at least the way we hoped it would work, but they knew that no one else was gonna try harder to fix it than, than us.
• 11:46
  And that's what we were able to build on, and I think that many of the entrepreneurs that you support, that we support, build those types of relationships with their consumers, with their
• 11:57
  companies that they're working with in order to be able to survive the ups and downs that invariably happen as you're bringing new solutions to market. Yeah.So getting back to some advice, some practical advice, um,
• 12:13
  kind of split this up between for the entrepreneurs in the room in this new moment, in this new era, what advice do you have to those early stage creators and builders? And then on the flip side,
• 12:27
  these CIOs out there, these, these, uh, industry leaders out there, CEOs that may be working to integrate new solutions, new ideas, new technologies, new companies or teams into what they're trying to do for the future.
• 12:42
  Do you have some lessons learned or, or wisdom to share with those two groups? Yeah. Happy to. I'm not sure how much wisdom there is in it, but I'll give it a shot. Um, so for the entrepreneurs, um,
• 12:55
  you have to be thinking about ways in which you're not just another point solution on, on a long map. Um, what is the challenge that you're gonna solve?
• 13:05
  And I will call out the, the investment that we made in Transcarent, not just because Glenn's in the first row, um, but because they are looking at a new and different health and care experience that is working with self-insured employers to address the challenges that their team members have in achieving health.
• 13:25
  And if all you're doing is just putting a smorgasbord of offerings, an average employer might have 15 to 20 different offerings available, but they're not integrated. They're not focused.
• 13:35
  People aren't directed to the right types of services they need, then frankly, as a self-insured employer, all you're doing is checking a box and maybe wasting a little money.
• 13:44
  So for the entrepreneurs in the audience, think about ways in which you're gonna be able to deliver an experience that meets people where they are, that drives a level of value to all of those who are going to have to support that offering going forward.
• 13:59
  And for the incumbents in this space, um, if you don't think about ways in which you're going to work with these types of offerings, the companies that are here at the Startup Festival and the like, um, be prepared to be disintermediated.
• 14:13
  Your business is going to be changed by what these organizations are doing, and you can fight it for only so long, but consumers have needs that aren't being met by our healthcare sy- health care system today.
• 14:29
  We know that there's a lack of dissatisfaction, and people are trying to find solutions that are more affordable, that are more accessible, that give them an opportunity to be met where they are.
• 14:40
  I really wanna give a shout-out to Dr.
• 14:42
  Jennifer Schneider and, and, and Homeward, the company that she launched, um, meeting individuals in rural communities with the types of services that they have to drive hours to get, and it's just not something that's conscionable in the type of world that we live in today.
• 14:58
  So what can we be doing better?
• 15:00
  And if you're a health system that's relying on people driving two and a half, three hours to come see you, you need to be thinking about how you can work with companies that are gonna provide better access, companies like MedArrive, one of our portfolio companies, that are meeting people in the home and delivering care.
• 15:17
  HomeThrive, that's helping to care for seniors, letting them live independently at home longer. These are the things that we're looking for, and you can partner, and...
• 15:27
  or you can put your, your head in the sand, so to speak, and I think these companies will continue to iterate around you. You, you mentioned, uh, Dr. Schneider, Glenn. Um, you, uh, you, you've all keep going. You keep...
• 15:44
  It's not just one and done. You, you keep building so many extraordinary... Each, each company we could tick off. Um, what keeps you going? What, what keeps you in the game?
• 15:55
  What keeps you trying to keep innovating in health specifically? I know... We all know how hard this is. Um, but what, what keeps you all going, or you, what you going? Well, uh, it's...
• 16:08
  Thank you, thank you for asking that. And, you know, there is a, a missionary aspect to what all of you in this room are doing. And thank you for doing it because we need it.
• 16:18
  Um, we have an obligation, I think, to provide health for all of us, the type of he- health that everyone in this room wants to achieve.
• 16:27
  That's what our neighbors, that's what people in communities that are less fortunate than those who are able to come to a conference like this need and, and need to have access to.
• 16:37
  And so when I wake up in the morning, we're in a race. We're in a race to change our healthcare system for the better, and there's so much good that can be done. There's a lot of low-hanging fruit.
• 16:48
  When Glenn and I first started investing close to 30 years ago, we invested in companies that were using technology to address broken business process.
• 16:57
  I think it's safe to say that there's enough broken process in healthcare to last all of our lifetimes. And so we need to find ways to address those challenges, and that's what keeps us going.
• 17:08
  And working with great founders, great entrepreneurs, teams that, that have that same mission orientation is part of what gets us excited and why we're so honored to have the opportunity to invest in so many great companies.
• 17:24
  Well, well, thank you for being such a, a friend to early stage entrepreneurs. Um, we all know how hard it is to get your first customers, raise capital, get validated, get backing.
• 17:39
  Um, and it's, it's just awesome to see how supportive you are of so many companies, um, through Seven Wire, through our impact fund, through other things that you do. It's, it's really, really meaningful.
• 17:51
  We need more investors and partners like you doing the same. Um, do you have an ask, uh, for either entrepreneurs or industry that, that you'd like to, to share?
• 18:04
  What I hope you all take away from this conference is to recognize that we're living in a really special momentUm, where we have opportunities to do great things and to do them together.
• 18:18
  Um, as I said at the outset, it's so wonderful to have this community here and together again after a hiatus of a couple of years. Um, and to find opportunities to collaborate, to share knowledge. This market is massive.
• 18:32
  Massive.
• 18:33
  I mean, we're talking about a healthcare system in the US alone that is close to $4 trillion in spend, and when you add the wellness market to that, people focused on exercise, weight loss, and nutraceuticals and the like, it's another $4 trillion.
• 18:50
  And we have problems around the world that we're trying to solve as well. Um, by 2025, there'll be as many people in India and China with diabetes as there are people in the US. Mm-hmm.
• 19:02
  And so thank you for doing a moonshot on diabetes.
• 19:04
  It's an area that is so close to the core values that, that we have at Seven Wire from the work that, that Glenn has done with the ADA and JDRF and companies that we support that are in this space.
• 19:18
  And, and for Alzheimer's, and, again, your new announcement there, helping seniors to live lives longer and, and without those types of challenges.
• 19:27
  And I think each of you could articulate other challenges that remain to be addressed, and that we can address better.
• 19:34
  So I hope that when we get together again next year and in the years to come, we'll continue to see this march forward, more progress, addressing the big problems that we face in the world today, um, and technology being at the core of what we deliver,
• 19:51
  using it to build trust with those we serve, and in balance with the rest of the healthcare ecosystem that hopefully gets aligned with us in terms of how we support reimbursement and the incentives that exist in order to make more of the offerings that you're bringing to market feasible.
• 20:08
  Lee, thank you so much for sharing your time and wisdom with us. Uh, grateful to have you as a partner and grateful to have you at the StartUp Health Festival. Thank you. Thanks so much.
• 20:19
  [upbeat music] Thanks for listening to StartUp Health NOW. StartUp Health invest in health transformers around the world who are dedicated to achieving audacious health moonshots.
• 20:30
  If you want to learn how you can join this community of entrepreneurs, or if you want to connect with one of our 400 companies, go to startuphealth.com.
• 20:38
  If you'd like to learn how you can invest in our Health Moonshot Impact Fund, go to healthmoonshots.com. Thanks for listening to StartUp Health NOW. We'll be back again with another episode next week. [upbeat music]