Past partnerships are paying off for two tech firms located in Albuquerque — one of which is purchasing the other.
RS21, which creates solutions for analyzing data through the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning, will acquire Versatile MED Analytics. VMA designs platforms for monitoring the drivers of health care costs and performance. The deal sets the stage for a new division at RS21 called the Health Lab. The division provides solutions by integrating and analyzing data from internal and external sources, a news release says.
As a result of the deal, the cofounders of VMA, Angelica Bruhnke and Stefany Goradia, will join RS21 as the president and vice president of analytics for Health Lab, respectively. The new division aims to develop tools that will allow users to improve costs and create more targeted programs, Bruhnke said.
“We are building next-generation data analytic tools that move beyond data that resides within an organization’s four walls to change how decision makers use data to visualize and improve health — whether that be financial health, performance health, or population health," Bruhnke said in a statement. Additional hires will be made immediately to support the growth of the new division, according to the release.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. It is set to close later this month, Goradia said.
The two companies have worked together in the past, previously linking up to develop a platform that would use AI and machine learning to identify trends in health care data. Being able to quickly identify patterns within large amounts of data, RS21 Chief Technology Officer Kameron Baumgardner previously told Business First, is a big opportunity for the use of AI.
RS21 expects revenue to grow 25% as a result of the deal, the release says. RS21 President and CEO Charles Rath was unable to say how much revenue the company made in 2020, but said about $15 million in revenue booked for this year, which would represent significant growth over last.
Moving forward, Rath said he could see health care representing more than half of RS21's portfolio. The company previously released its Urban Health Vulnerability Index, designed to help identify urban populations at high risk for Covid-19.
VMA employees will join RS21, the release says. It reportedly employed about 60 between its offices in Albuquerque and Washington, D.C. as of last year. It previously landed an up to $800,000 Local Economic Development Act incentive package from the state for an expansion, Business First reported.
"We want to be the preeminent health care analytics company in New Mexico, if not the region," said Rath, who last year was one of seven people named as winners of Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur of the Year Mountain Desert Region Award for 2020.
