EnsoData Inc., a Madison health care artificial intelligence startup, got its start in the world of sleep medicine with technology that automates sleep study data to help providers diagnose sleep apnea more quickly and accurately.
Coming off of a recent $20 million Series A capital raise, EnsoData is working to scale that technology worldwide, expand commercial distribution and branch out beyond sleep, EnsoData CEO and co-founder Chris Fernandez said.
Minneapolis-based sleep apnea treatment company Inspire Medical Systems Inc. (NYSE: INSP) was the lead investor in EnsoData's latest raise, the startup announced June 3. Inspire Medical Systems is also a partner, representing a new type of customer EnsoData is targeting as it grows, Fernandez said.
"That's one thing we're going to be doubling down on, is our relationships with medical device, diagnostic and treatment companies," he said.
EnsoData also plans to expand within the health provider market, which has been its primary customer segment to date. Its partners range from large networks like Chicago's Rush University System for Health and St. Joseph Health System in Bryan, Texas, to small clinics, Fernandez said.
EnsoData's FDA-cleared waveform AI technology for sleep is used in more than 500 clinics across the U.S. and has helped more than 500,000 patients, according to the company. It has expanded into Canada and has plans for Australia and Europe, Fernandez said. It expects to hit 1 million patients served by early next year, he added.
Additionally, EnsoData is also developing a solution that would be available to health care payers — particularly Medicare Advantage, Fernandez said. The startup is also working to find new applications beyond sleep medicine, he said.
"There's a lot of other conditions that our fundamental technology applies to," Fernandez said. "We've been collaborating with several tier-one academic medical centers to clinically validate the next slate of conditions that we'll be unveiling hopefully later this year."
With the new funding, EnsoData also plans to grow its team from around 35 employees today to about 50 by the end of this year, Fernandez said. Although it has a headquarters on Madison's Capitol Square, around 50% to 60% of its employees work remotely from across the country, he said.
In addition to Inspire Medical Systems, many of EnsoData's existing investors also participated in the latest funding round. They include Zetta Venture Partners, Venture Investors, Supermoon Capital, Colle Capital, HealthX Ventures, M25 Ventures, Justin Mortara, Fred Robertson and others. In total, EnsoData has raised more than $30 million in venture capital to date, Fernandez said.
EnsoData also announced it named Mortara as its president. Mortara was formerly CEO of Milwaukee's Mortara Instrument Inc., which sold for $330 million in 2017.
EnsoData was among the winners of Wisconsin Inno's 2021 Fire Awards, a program through the Milwaukee Business Journal's sister publication that recognizes innovators that are "heating up" the state's technology and startup ecosystem.
