Collaborative HealthTech startup, 32Co, has raised £2.36m in seed funding, led by Balderton Capital, to advance its innovative approach to accessible specialist healthcare.
The platform founded by Dr Sonia Szamocki is growing rapidly and expanding from its London headquarters.
The funding, which includes participation from Wavemaker 360 Health and strategic angels, will fuel the development of 32Co’s comprehensive clinical collaboration platform with artificial intelligence and prepare to build on new clinical use cases.
32Co is revolutionising access to specialised healthcare services by connecting general clinicians with a network of specialists.
Inspired by the virtual care sector, 32Co’s platform brings the specialist to the patient to enable them to access a range of specialist advice and clinical services without the travel, waiting times and often high fees.
This unique model scales specialist expertise beyond the confines of a single clinic, instantly generating additional supply through a network of generalist colleagues who already have existing patient relationships.
This creates new revenue streams for both generalist and specialist clinicians, whilst simultaneously increasing patient access to specialised services.
Szamocki, the founder and CEO of 32Co, was driven by her own experiences in the healthcare industry to establish the platform.
As a doctor educated at Oxford and having worked in London hospitals, she recognised the readily available specialist expertise in hospitals, in stark contrast to the isolation often experienced by clinicians in primary care settings.
Driven by a desire to empower general clinicians to provide more specialised care in their communities, 32Co aims to address this unmet patient demand.
Szamocki said: “32Co is an all-in-one healthcare platform changing the way healthcare is delivered to patients by scaling specialist expertise beyond the specialist’s clinic.
“Traditional healthcare models cannot keep up with the demand for increasingly specialised treatment; and yet highly trained general clinicians are not empowered to work at their full potential.
“By connecting clinicians with different but complementary skill sets using technology, not only do more patients get access to the treatment they need, but clinicians feel less isolated and more fulfilled in their work.
“We see applications for this model in several healthcare specialities with a market size of over $500bn. We’re delighted to have the belief of Balderton and their experience and support will be integral as we scale 32Co.”
Starting with orthodontics, 32Co is transforming the clear aligner (braces) industry. Only about a third of dentists offer clear aligner treatments consistently and only a fraction are able to treat more complex cases.
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With 60 per cent of patients suffering from misaligned teeth, there is significant unmet patient demand in this space due to constrained supply.
To address this issue, 32Co has assembled a team of highly experienced UK-based specialist orthodontists who collaborate directly with dentists worldwide through the platform.
Their guidance ensures safe and reliable outcomes, establishing the first real-time, treatment-focused commercial collaboration for clear aligner providers.
Since April 2022, 32Co has grown 5x, with hundreds of dentists signing up each month.
The platform has garnered interest from dentists globally, including large dental groups.
Magda Lukaszewicz, principal at Balderton, said: “We are proud to have partnered with 32co at the start of their journey. Having a number of health tech companies target patients directly – a lot fewer have managed to bring technology platforms to the hands of healthcare professionals, and collaboration between general practitioners and specialists is unlocking a completely new supply and demand – in an overwhelmed healthcare system.”