AlphaLab Health is a healthcare and life sciences accelerator that accelerates scientific, clinical, and market validation for early-stage healthcare and life science technology companies. It supports early-stage tech startups in their efforts to bring innovations to market, navigating key risk points of scientific, clinical, and commercial development.

AlphaLab Health

For more than 20 years, Innovation Works has played a vital role in Southwestern PA's technology economy, investing capital, business expertise, and other resources into high-potential companies with the greatest likelihood for regional economic impact. IW is the single largest investor in seed-stage companies in the region. They also provide resources for manufacturers to adopt new technologies.

Innovation Works

StartUp Health is investing in a global army of Health Transformers to achieve health moonshots. StartUp Health is on a 30-year mission to collaborate with entrepreneurs to improve the health and wellbeing of everyone in the world. Since 2011, StartUp Health has been investing in a global army of entrepreneurs -- called Health Transformers -- to achieve health moonshots: Access to Care, Cost to Zero, Cure Disease, End to Cancer, Women’s Health, Children’s Health, Nutrition and Fitness, Brain Health, Mental Health and Happiness, Addiction, Longevity, and Pandemic Response.   StartUp Health has the world’s largest health innovation portfolio with more than 330 companies across six continents and 26 countries and is backed by leading investors including Advocate Aurora Health, Chiesi, Steve Case, Mark Cuban, Esther Dyson, Brad Feld, GuideWell, Jason Finger, Jerry Levin, Kaiser Permanente, Masimo, Novartis, Otsuka, and Ping An.

StartUp Health

Techstars is a global platform that provides investment and innovation. Through the Techstars Worldwide Entrepreneur Network, founders and their teams connect with other entrepreneurs, experts, mentors, alumni, investors, community leaders, and corporate partners who will help their companies grow. Techstars operates four divisions: Techstars Mentorship-Driven Accelerator Program supercharges success and Techstars Startup Programs inspire, educate, and connect entrepreneurs. Techstars Venture Capital Fund invests in innovative and disruptive companies. Techstars Corporate Innovation Partnerships help brands create products and services. Techstars' accelerator portfolio includes more than 1,000 companies with a market cap of $8.1 billion.

Techstars

Plug and Play is a seed and early-stage investor focused on great teams leading emerging growth companies.  Plug and Play runs 12 industry-specific accelerator programs twice a year, that acts as a platform for major corporations and high quality startups to connect and collaborate.  Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, Plug and Play participates in Seed, Angel and Series A funding where they often co-invest with their strategic partners. Through years of experience and as part of their network, Plug and Play has put together a world-class network of serial entrepreneurs, strategic investors, and industry leaders who actively assist the firm with its successful and growing investment portfolio.  SEED ROUND. Plug and Play participates in seed round investing through a program called Startup Camp. Startup Camp is a 10-week program based in Silicon Valley for top-notch entrepreneurs to work intensively on building out their business model. Select startups will refine their business models and prototypes with help from a combination of structured workshops, speaker series and mentorship sessions, as well as active coaching from their investment team. At the culmination of Startup Camp, founders will have crystalized their business plans and pitched their company to the venture capital community at EXPO Demo Day.''  ANGEL ROUND Plug and Play makes angel round investments throughout the year, sourced from their monthly Plug and Play Angels (PAPA) sessions. They are partnered with local angel investors in Silicon Valley who participate in PAPA to find the most promising startups and best new technologies.  SERIES A. Series A typical Series A round is in the range of $2 million to $10 million, and is intended to provide operating capital for the company for six months to two years. This round capitalizes the company as it develops its products, performs initial marketing and branding, acquires talent, and conducts other early-stage business operations. It is in this stage that Plug and Play will co-invest with over 180 venture capital partners.  Plug and Play has helped grow market leaders such as PayPal, Danger, Google, DropBox, LendingClub, Zoosk, SoundHound, CreditSesame, Skytree, and has over 400 more early-stage startups in its portfolio.

Plug and Play

MuckerLab is a venture capital firm specializing in incubation, pre-seed, seed, startup, early-stage, and Series A investments. It targets investing in Internet software, services, and media ventures. It also prefers to invest in Enterprise, fintech, B2B and Consumer Products.  MuckerLab seeks to invest in Los Angeles and broader Southern California. It typically invests between $0.25 million and $1 million per deal. It runs an accelerator program.  The duration of the program can be as short as 3 months to as long as 24 months. It invests between $21,000 to $150,000 in exchange for a 7% to 12% equity stake.  Erik Rannala and William Hsu founded MuckerLab in October 2011. It has its headquarters in Santa Monica in California.

Mucker Capital

Everywhere Ventures (fka ''The Fund'') is a first-of-its-kind early-stage venture fund created ​by founders for founders​ to support the next generation of entrepreneurs. Everywhere Ventures is a community-powered venture investing platform that integrates the capital, expertise, and mentoring of experienced founders and operators across ten micro funds. The Fund's $70M+ under management comes almost exclusively from the over 500 founders and operators who are its limited partners. Everywhere Ventures operates from the belief that those who have actually built successful companies are best suited to advise and support early-stage startups. Everywhere Ventures invests in pre-seed deals globally usually in the first financing round the company raises. Emphasis is placed on purpose-driven teams across money, health and work verticals.

Everywhere Ventures

Riverfront Ventures is a venture capital firm specializing in seed and early-stage investments. The firm seeks to invest in companies in Pittsburgh with the potential to create high-paying jobs. It was founded in 2013 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Riverfront Ventures

Digital Health Ventures (DHV) is a sector-focused Venture Capital Fund based in Berlin. They are experienced early-stage investors with a track record that includes several strong European healthcare innovators. Our mission is to build a sustainable Digital Health ecosystem. They actively support portfolio entrepreneurs and leverage our networks in tech and healthcare. They work together closely and find joint solutions. They invest in startups which will play a significant role in healthcare and that want a strong partner during this journey.

Digital Health Ventures

AI-first, seed-first fund in digital health, automation (cars, drones, robots) & enterprise. Tau Ventures was founded in 2019 and headquartered in Palo Alto, California.

Tau Ventures

Boutique Venture Partners focuses on emerging healthcare and life science solutions to make a significant impact at scale. We are a team of hardcore scientists and clinicians who partner with outstanding founders to create innovative and disruptive approaches that improve health and wellness. We leverage our deep connections with the healthcare ecosystem to get early access to innovations and discoveries coming out of premiere academic institutes and industry. We pay particular attention to early-stage companies that are (i) developing novel approaches/platforms with solid IP, (ii) founded by authentic entrepreneurs with deep domain expertise, and (iii) having large growth potential while demonstrating societal impact. At Boutique, our team of top-tier scientists and business leaders work closely with portfolio companies to launch the next generation of transformative technologies.

Boutique Venture Partners

BrokerTech Ventures is a program for investors and innovators building the next generation of technology solutions for insurance agencies and brokerages. The owners of the program are leading insurance brokers who seek to work with and invest in innovators building new solutions to improve customer experiences and insurance operations.

BrokerTech Ventures

Handl Health

Price transparency platform that helps benefits consultants convert more business, retain clients and execute on savings goals.

<div>Founded in 2022, Handl Health provides platforms for comparing healthcare benefits and health plan networks. The platforms additionally enable employers and benefit consultants to manage healthcare-related costs and health plan subscriptions. Handl Health&rsquo;s platforms, &lsquo;Iris,&rsquo; for network analytics, and &lsquo;Arke,&rsquo; for real-time cost information, use published hospital and health plan price transparency data to carry out AI-based analytics on developing custom and cost-effective health benefits packages.</div>

Managing employee health-related benefits

Health Benefits Platforms

Handl Health Raises $2.5M in Seed Funding

<div>
 
 Founded in 2022, Handl Health provides platforms for comparing healthcare benefits and health plan networks. The platforms additionally enable employers and benefit consultants to manage healthcare-related costs and health plan subscriptions. Handl Health&rsquo;s platforms, &lsquo;Iris,&rsquo; for network analytics, and &lsquo;Arke,&rsquo; for real-time cost information, use published hospital and health plan price transparency data to carry out AI-based analytics on developing custom and cost-effective health benefits packages.
 
 
 
 
 Funding and financials
 
 
 
 
 In April 2024, Handl Health raised USD 2.5 million in an oversubscribed Seed funding round initiated by Mucker Capital and Everywhere VC, along with participation from other venture capital firms. Additionally, the company received a grant of USD 1.3 million from the National Institute of Nursing Research of the NIH. The seed funds were set aside to advance the platform&rsquo;s analytics and workflow automation capabilities. The grant funds were earmarked to develop a system for pre-appointment billing and payment that enables collaboration with third-party administrators, providers, and health plan members.
 
</div>

Corestream provides voluntary benefits administration through a cloud-based, proprietary HR technology platform. The platform creates a single integration point for carriers, brokers, employers and employees to streamline the selection and administration of insurance benefits and other employee perks. The platform handles insurance benefits like critical illness, long term care, pet insurance, auto and home insurance, as well as financial assistance programs and health/wellness offerings. A Duke University study found that enrollment through Corestream's platform contributes to employee retention, with enrolled employees staying an average of six years versus three years for non-enrolled employees. The platform removes complexity by demystifying benefit features and preventing employees from enrolling in unsuitable benefits, as these offerings are not one-size-fits-all.
Key customers and partnerships
In January 2022, Corestream entered into a strategic partnership with Standard Insurance Company (The Standard) to streamline benefits management and provide insurance products through its platform. Corestream's platform was delivering benefits to more than two million employees as of March 2022. The company has also partnered with Enhesa to provide content supporting risk management and compliance requirements, and with SafePaaS to support identity security and access governance solutions. Additionally, Corestream maintains a partnership with Data Privacy Simplified to offer consultancy services including information audits, gap analysis, and requirements identification.

CoreStream

BeneBay is a cloud-based claims processing and management technology platform for healthcare services. The platform processes claims at the point of service and provides real-time data responses to help manage healthcare costs effectively. Initially developed and implemented in Northern Europe, where it processed over 90% of private health insurance transactions covering 400,000 members, the platform expanded to the US market starting in Florida in mid-2015. BeneBay functions as an online self-insurance platform specifically designed for smaller employers, addressing the underserved market of health benefits for smaller groups through self-funded health insurance products and simplified product design. The platform's technology stack includes secure cloud delivery, built-in intelligence, and automation features for claims adjudication. In 2016, BeneBay reported annual recurring revenues of USD 0.5 million.
Key customers and partnerships
BeneBay served customers in Florida following its US market entry. In Northern Europe, the platform managed transactions for a member base of 400,000 individuals in the private health insurance sector.

Benebay

Benecaid Health Benefit Solutions Inc. is a provider of group health benefits solutions for Canadian small and medium-sized businesses. The company's core offering includes health spending accounts (HSAs) and the Honeybee digital benefits platform. Through HSAs, employers can provide tax-free accounts for employees to pay for healthcare services not covered by government insurance plans. In July 2022, Benecaid, as part of the Green Shield Canada (GSC) group of companies, launched Honeybee Select, a digital benefits solution specifically designed for small businesses with 25 or fewer employees. Honeybee Select offers standardized health, dental, and travel benefits plans powered by GSC, with additional mental health coverage through Inkblot Therapy. The platform features streamlined user experience, add-on allowance accounts, and electronic claims processing through GSC's adjudication platform, enabling instant eligibility assessment at healthcare providers.
Key customers and partnerships
Benecaid operates as a third-party administrator for several Canadian insurance companies and serves clients through a network of independent licensed insurance advisors. Benecaid integrated GSC's adjudication system for processing health and dental claims for Honeybee Select plan members. The company also partnered with Inkblot Therapy to provide mental health coverage as part of its Honeybee Select offering.

Benecaid

Marsh McLennan Agency (MMA) is a provider of business insurance, employee health and benefits, retirement, and private client insurance solutions in North America. The company offers services including commercial property and casualty insurance, employee benefits, management liability, cyber insurance, captives, alternative risk transfer programs, small business solutions, and personal lines insurance. As of January 2024, MMA operates through 170 offices across the US and Canada with over 9,900 employees. The company generated more than USD 2 billion in annualized revenue, making it one of the largest brokerage operations in North America. MMA leverages data analytics capabilities, maintaining one of the industry's largest data repositories to help clients make objective decisions about insurance products and risk exposure. In November 2024, MMA completed the acquisition of McGriff Insurance Services, integrating over 3,500 employees and expanding its capabilities in specialty and middle-market segments. McGriff, which reported revenue of USD 1.3 billion for the 12 months ended June 2024, brought expertise in areas such as commercial property and casualty, corporate bonding and surety, cyber insurance, and management liability.
Key customers and partnerships
MMA works with organizations across various industries including healthcare, senior living, physician practices, construction, transportation, education, agriculture, hospitality, public entities, and banking. The company serves as the official business insurance partner for NCHA (North Carolina healthcare Association) and works with more hospitals and health systems in North Carolina than any other brokerage or consultant.

Marsh McLennan Agency

SAG-AFTRA Health Plan provides health insurance coverage to eligible members of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). The plan offers comprehensive medical services including medical, surgical, mental health, life and AD&D insurance, maternity care, hearing aids, therapy, and dental and vision services. As of January 2024, only 12.7% of SAG-AFTRA's 170,000 members qualify for the union's health plan. Monthly premiums for members range from USD 125 to USD 250, with costs increasing to USD 2,501 following unemployment. The plan requires members to meet specific earnings-based or days-based eligibility criteria, which varies depending on occupation and work performed under specific contracts.
Key customers and partnerships
The SAG-AFTRA Health Plan partnered with Carrot Fertility in 2024 to provide infertility treatment coverage starting January 2025, offering services including IVF, IUI, and prescription drug therapy with a family lifetime maximum of USD 30,000. In December 2022, the organization partnered with AFL-CIO to offer new SAG-AFTRA Senior Benefit Plans for Medicare-eligible members and their Medicare-eligible spouses/partners.

SAG-AFTRA Health Plan

Enterprise platforms that help employees and their dependents receive primary or specialist care services as part of their health benefits. These platforms also provide access to Telehealth services, behavioral care services, and remote patient monitoring

Enterprise platforms that help employees better navigate their healthcare journey by identifying which healthcare services are covered under their benefits plan and how to best maximize their use (e.g. identifying a wider pool of suitable regional physicians for consultation)

Enterprise platforms that specialize in helping employees manage their pharmacy- and prescription-related benefits to refill prescriptions or dispense medication for in-store pickup or home delivery

Enterprise platforms that allow employers to directly manage and customize employee benefit plans. These platforms enable enterprises to present employees with multiple health benefits options across health plans and negotiate terms with third-party health administrator services and insurance providers

Platforms are offered using a B2B SaaS business model, enabling digital health

Platforms are offered on a B2B basis to help manage employee benefits across an enterprise

Handl Health

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