Vega Health, a healthcare technology company focused on enabling health systems to realize measurable value from artificial intelligence, announced its official launch with $4 million in seed funding from Bessemer Venture Partners.
The company aims to close the gap between validated AI innovations and scalable, real-world healthcare adoption through a curated marketplace, proprietary integration platform, and unbiased performance monitoring system.
Vega Health is designed to help health systems identify and implement AI solutions that have been clinically validated and proven effective in real-world settings. Its platform connects healthcare organizations with tools that directly align with their operational and clinical priorities, offering implementation support and ongoing performance assessment to ensure measurable outcomes.
Despite over $13 billion in healthcare AI investment in 2024, most AI initiatives have failed to scale beyond pilot stages, often due to fragmented implementation processes and poor linkage between AI model performance and clinical outcomes. Vega Health seeks to address these systemic challenges by providing both the infrastructure and expertise needed to turn promising AI models into practical, system-wide solutions.
The company was founded by Dr. Mark Sendak, MD, MPP, a nationally recognized expert in healthcare AI who previously served as the Population Health & Data Science Lead at the Duke Institute for Health Innovation (DIHI) and co-founded the Health AI Partnership (HAIP).
Sendak brings more than a decade of experience implementing AI in healthcare environments, with extensive work spanning machine learning model development, clinical integration, and regulatory compliance.
Vega Health’s model builds on best practices pioneered at Duke Health, where Sendak and his team have developed and deployed more than 10 validated AI solutions that improved care delivery. These solutions now form part of Vega Health’s growing marketplace, which also provides commercialization pathways for healthcare innovators seeking to expand the reach of their AI technologies beyond their original institutions.
The company’s offerings are tailored to both health systems and innovators. For healthcare providers, Vega Health offers a curated marketplace of validated solutions, along with implementation and measurement support, as well as co-development opportunities to tailor tools to local needs. For innovators, the platform offers commercialization support, access to new distribution channels, and transparent, independent monitoring of solution performance across varied environments.
By combining clinical expertise, technical integration, and performance accountability, Vega Health aims to become the essential connective infrastructure linking AI innovation to real-world value for patients and providers alike.
KEY QUOTES:
“Healthcare deserves AI that solves real problems, demonstrates tangible value, and scales quickly. During my time at Duke, I saw too many impactful AI solutions remain siloed in the sites they were created. I saw how difficult it was for health systems to adapt and implement effective solutions, even if those solutions worked elsewhere. We launched Vega Health to build the connective tissue necessary to make healthcare AI actually work, and connect health systems with the solutions that best advance their priorities. Our team has the experience to effectively integrate and monitor these solutions while driving adoption, outcomes, and value.”
“I’ve witnessed first-hand what happens when clinical and technical experts work side-by-side to apply technology to solve healthcare’s biggest problems: you earn the trust necessary to drive meaningful change. At Vega Health, we’re building the essential infrastructure necessary to realize AI’s full potential for improving patient outcomes and operational efficiency, and drive meaningful AI adoption at scale in healthcare.”
Mark Sendak, MD, MPP, Co-founder and CEO, Vega Health
“Healthcare needs exactly what Vega Health provides: objective and practical AI expertise from someone who has actually made AI work in real clinical settings. Mark’s track record at Duke has enabled him to build deep relationships across healthcare, and his vision for Vega Health is backed by the authority to deliver results. I couldn’t be prouder to be partnering with a leader who can build the right technology, bring the right approach, and is positioned to serve an underserved market desperate for trusted guidance. It’s time to make AI actually work for health systems and their patients.”
Lance Co Ting Keh, Venture Partner, Bessemer Venture Partners and Co-founder, Vega Health
“Vega Health’s approach is refreshingly pragmatic: deliver AI that improves outcomes today, not just promises results tomorrow. Vega has assembled a team that understands the intricacies of both code and clinical settings. Their partnership approach, combined with technical depth and operational experience, will deliver clinical AI that produces lasting results.”
Jared Augenstein, Senior Managing Director, Manatt Health
