The Heart of Healthcare | A Digital Health Podcast

Chris Klomp, Medicare director and former digital health founder, brings startup smarts to federal health policy. He talks about restoring trust across providers and payers. He explains why value-based care lags and how the Access model aims to be deflationary. He outlines plans to make prior authorization invisible, push strong data interoperability, and reshape drug pricing globally.

Tough funding realities in 2026 and why AI-native health startups are getting attention. Trade-offs between small funds and mega VCs and what pay-to-play actually means. Rebalancing co-founder equity when someone leaves and how many board seats to offer early on. Diagnosing growth plateaus and negotiating health system liability terms.

Helmy Eltoukhy, co-founder and co-CEO of Guardant Health and leader in liquid biopsy innovation, walks through the rise of blood-based cancer screening. He discusses cell-free DNA and methylation-based tests, the pathway from late-stage use to early detection, Medicare coverage implications, and the business and regulatory hurdles shaping diagnostic adoption.

Biotech is back on investors' radars with renewed IPO activity and platform-focused drug discovery. Pharma advertising is surging, raising debates over consumer-targeted drug marketing and legal limits. Hims & Hers’ big acquisition and FDA scrutiny of compounded GLP‑1s make for regulatory drama. A headline-grabbing $1M longevity program sparks questions about evidence and equity.

Eric Lefkofsky, founder and CEO of Tempus and serial entrepreneur, built AI-driven precision medicine after a personal cancer wake-up call. He discusses building a sequencing lab and massive clinical data infrastructure. He explains the struggle of extracting EHR data, how AI will reshape patient-physician interactions, and what policy changes could responsibly pay for AI in healthcare.

A live conversation about why past tech waves failed in healthcare and why AI might finally stick. They explore current AI wins like scribes and summaries, legal risks in radiology, and how EHRs shape who will control AI. Innovation strategy, cultural barriers, and when humans should act before AI are also highlighted.

Dr. Karen DeSalvo, physician and former Google Chief Health Officer who led health initiatives across government and tech. She explores how search and chat are becoming the front door to care. Talks about Google’s safety guardrails, AI ‘doctor in your pocket’ tools, regulatory tensions, and how wearables and at-home diagnostics are reshaping primary care.

A rapid roundup of the biggest health tech headlines shaping 2026. They dig into AI prescribing pilots and fresh FDA guidance on clinical decision support. Legal dramas show up, from imaging liability to a major antitrust fight with Epic. New data on GLP-1s and employer costs and a look at why healthcare hiring is cooling round out the list.

Conversations about modernizing how clinical data moves and why healthcare still relies on fax and after‑the‑fact billing. Exploration of securing patient information against cyberattacks and tokenization as a path to safer data exchange. Discussion of scaling a national health data exchange and the incentives blocking value‑based care and better medical records.

Ankit Jain, co-founder and CEO of Infinitus Systems, shares his expertise on voice-based AI in healthcare. He reveals how AI is transforming high-stakes medical calls, emphasizing the shift from traditional communication methods like phones and faxes. Ankit predicts that while many health systems will attempt to build their own AI agents by 2026, most will revert to vendors by 2027. He also discusses potential risks, the importance of safety regulations, and how AI can ultimately enhance personalized care in the industry.