The Scalpels & Spreadsheets Podcast

Dr. Aman Desai
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  • Entrepreneurship

The Scalpels & Spreadsheets Podcast explores the future of healthcare through conversations with the builders, investors, operators, and clinicians shaping the industry. Scalpels & Spreadsheets brings together the global healthcare community through media, curated events, and meaningful connections. The podcast extends that mission beyond the room, amplifying the people and ideas driving healthcare forward when we’re not facilitating them in person.

  1. 8h ago

    #31 She Speaks Health: What Great Operators Do. Melody Yao. Amanda Kichline. France Ovalle.

    Building a healthcare startup is one challenge. Building the systems that allow it to scale is another. Melody Yao (Strategy & Operations, Ambience Healthcare) and Amanda Kichline (Founder & CEO, Tavia Health) join France Ovalle (NY Events, Scalpels & Spreadsheets) for She Speaks Health Vol. 2 to discuss what it takes to turn early traction into lasting growth. Drawing from their experiences building healthcare startups, they share lessons on scaling operations, hiring the right teams, navigating ambiguity, and making better decisions as companies evolve. The conversation explores how AI is changing the role of operators, where automation creates the most value, and why judgment, customer understanding, and strong operational foundations remain essential for building healthcare companies that last. Recorded live during Scalpels & Spreadsheets' Healthtech Week during NY Tech Week.

    #31 She Speaks Health: What Great Operators Do. Melody Yao. Amanda Kichline. France Ovalle.

  2. 3d ago

    #30 How Takeda Is Reinventing Pharma with AI. Gabriele Ricci.

    AI is reshaping every stage of the pharmaceutical value chain, from discovering new medicines to delivering better outcomes for patients. The companies that lead won't simply adopt better models. They'll rethink how they operate. Gabriele Ricci (Chief Data & Technology Officer, Takeda) joins Aman Desai to discuss how one of the world's largest biopharmaceutical companies is scaling AI, data, and digital technologies across the entire value chain. He shares how Takeda is using AI to accelerate drug discovery, modernize research and manufacturing, improve decision-making, and rethink how new capabilities are integrated through partnerships and acquisitions. The conversation also touches on Takeda's acquisition of Nimbus Therapeutics' zasocitinib program and what it reveals about building AI-enabled innovation through a combination of internal capabilities and strategic partnerships. The conversation explores why AI acts more like a mirror than a magic wand, exposing broken processes, poor-quality data, and organizational bottlenecks that must be addressed before technology can deliver its full potential. Gabriele also discusses how AI has reduced drug target identification from months to weeks, shortened development timelines, enabled more personalized care, and why trust, judgment, and organizational change will ultimately determine which companies lead the next era of pharmaceutical innovation. Recorded live at HLTH Europe in June 2026.

    #30 How Takeda Is Reinventing Pharma with AI. Gabriele Ricci.

  3. 4d ago

    #29 Sick Care is Dead. What Comes Next?

    The doctor's office is no longer the default entry point into healthcare. So what comes next? Royan Kamyar, MD (Founder & CEO, Owaves), Dr. Sohaib Imtiaz, MD, MPH (Chief Medical Officer, People Inc.), Dr. Erin Nance, MD (Founder & CEO, TakeAway MD and FeelBetr Health), Dr. Hillary Lin, MD (Co-Founder & CEO, CareCore), and Alina Zolotareva, RDN (Co-Founder & Chief Marketing Officer, VO Health) join Brittany Sigler, DrPH (Founder & Fractional Product Executive, Bright Signal Consulting), for a panel exploring how healthcare is shifting beyond traditional institutions. As consumers gain greater access to diagnostics, AI-powered tools, and personalized health platforms, the discussion examines how clinicians, founders, and patients are adapting to a healthcare system that is becoming increasingly proactive, digital, and consumer-driven. The conversation explores the rise of longevity-focused care, the opportunities and limitations of AI in prevention, why behavior change remains one of healthcare's hardest problems, and how trust, education, and accessibility influence long-term health outcomes. The panel also shares perspectives on empowering patients with better data, building products that fit naturally into everyday life, and what the next generation of preventive healthcare could look like. Recorded live during Scalpels & Spreadsheets' Healthtech Week during NY Tech Week.

    #29 Sick Care is Dead. What Comes Next?

  4. Jul 6

    #28 Health AI: From Research to Production. Nyamitse-Calvin Mahinda. Timothy Martens. Kerry Weinberg. Vitalay Fomin.

    Most healthcare AI conversations focus on what was built. This one focused on what it actually takes to get it into the hands of people who need it. Kerry Weinberg (Founder & CEO of PhenoML), Vitalay Fomin (Co-Founder & CEO of Numenos AI), Timothy Martens (Co-Founder of Vaark Ventures; Chief Medical Officer of uCTRL), and Nyamitse-Calvin Mahinda (Founder & CEO of Vital Audio) join Brittany Sigler (Founder of Bright Signal Consulting), for a panel exploring what it takes to move AI from promising demos to tools that create real-world impact. Drawing on experiences across drug discovery, clinical care, healthcare infrastructure, and startup building, the discussion unpacks the technical, regulatory, and human challenges of deploying AI in one of the world's most complex industries. The conversation explores why healthcare demands a different approach to AI than every other industry, when large language models help or hurt clinical decision-making, what actually creates a defensible moat for healthcare startups, and why adoption depends just as much on workflow and trust as it does on technology. The panel also shares candid perspectives on product development, clinician buy-in, patient empowerment, and what the next generation of healthcare AI should look like. Recorded live during Scalpels & Spreadsheets' Healthtech Week during NY Tech Week.

    #28 Health AI: From Research to Production. Nyamitse-Calvin Mahinda. Timothy Martens. Kerry Weinberg. Vitalay Fomin.

  5. Jul 6

    #27 Deploying AI in Healthcare’s Most Complex Systems. Martin Seneviratne. Brittany Sigler.

    What does it take to move healthcare AI from theory to operation? Martin Seneviratne, Co-CEO of R37 at R1, joins Brittany Sigler, Founder of Bright Signal Consulting, for a fireside conversation exploring what it takes to deploy AI inside one of healthcare's most complex operational environments. After leaving DeepMind to co-found an AI-native healthcare startup, Martin now helps bring cutting-edge machine learning into the workflows that power revenue cycle management for many of the largest health systems in the United States. The conversation explores why deploying AI in healthcare remains far more difficult than building impressive models, how legacy organizations can become an advantage rather than a barrier, why data and distribution matter as much as the technology itself, and what it takes to transform decades-old healthcare workflows. Martin also shares candid perspectives on building AI products that deliver measurable outcomes, balancing research with execution, and why healthcare's biggest opportunity is getting AI into production at scale. Recorded live at Scalpels & Spreadsheets' Healthtech Week during NY Tech Week.

    #27 Deploying AI in Healthcare’s Most Complex Systems. Martin Seneviratne. Brittany Sigler.

  6. Jul 3

    #26 Off the Record: The Human Layer of AI Drug Discovery

    Building one of Canada's leading AI-driven genetic medicines platform companies didn't happen without hard decisions, failed bets, and the willingness to pivot. Tom Masterson, Chief Operating Officer at Deep Genomics, joins Aman Desai to share the company's journey from early machine learning models to becoming a leader in AI-powered drug discovery. He reflects on the pivotal decisions that shaped Deep Genomics, including a move away from drug development programs towards becoming a AI drug development platform company, how it navigated one of the largest biotech financings in Canadian history, and what it takes to continually evolve in one of healthcare's fastest-moving industries. The conversation explores how Deep Genomics approaches AI-driven drug discovery, the importance of high-quality biological data, partnering with pharmaceutical companies, and why combining cutting-edge AI with deep scientific expertise remains a lasting competitive advantage. Tom also shares candid lessons on navigating failure, making difficult strategic pivots, and building a company designed for long-term impact. Recorded live at Toronto Tech Week during Scalpels & Spreadsheets' 'Healthtech Social: Off the Record' event on May 28 2026.

    #26 Off the Record: The Human Layer of AI Drug Discovery

  7. Jul 2

    #25 Closing the Deal: Structuring Contracts that Scale. Bettina Xue Griffen. Meagan Tanguilig.

    Bettina Xue Griffen, a Commercial Lawyer at Fasken, joins for a fireside chat on the legal and commercial realities of selling into healthcare. Drawing from her experience helping startups and scaleups navigate enterprise contracts, Bettina shares practical strategies for structuring pilot agreements, negotiating with healthcare organizations, pricing pilots, and avoiding the "pilot purgatory" that prevents many promising partnerships from becoming lasting customers. The conversation explores common mistakes founders make during negotiations, how to think about pricing and contract structure, when to walk away from a deal, and why legal strategy should accelerate growth and not slow it down. Recorded live at at the Healthtech Social: Off the Record event during Toronto Tech Week on May 28 2026.

    #25 Closing the Deal: Structuring Contracts that Scale. Bettina Xue Griffen. Meagan Tanguilig.

  8. Jun 29

    #24 How Healthtech Teams are Integrating AI into Live Products. Bruno Ferrari. Otto Sipe. Vikas Sharma.

    AI has become the biggest conversation in healthcare, but what does it mean if you already have a product in the market? Do you pivot to compete with AI native companies or stay steady? On the other side, will the speed and adaptability of AI-first startups remain an advantage as the technology matures? Bruno Ferrari (Head of Innovation at Light-it), Otto Sipe (Co-Founder & CEO of Photon Health), and Vikas Sharma (Director of Deployment at Anterior) join for a panel exploring how healthcare organizations are moving beyond AI hype and into real-world deployment. Drawing from their experiences building products for providers, payers, and patients, they discuss what it takes to integrate AI into existing workflows while balancing cost, trust, regulation, and measurable outcomes. The conversation explores why many companies approach AI implementation the wrong way, how startups should think about infrastructure versus features, the evolving role of engineers in an AI-first world, and where the biggest opportunities still exist across healthcare. The panel also shares candid perspectives on fundraising, token economics, workflow redesign, and why solving real customer problems is what ultimately creates lasting value. Recorded live during NY Tech Week at Scalpels & Spreadsheets’ 2026 Healthtech Week in New York City.

    #24 How Healthtech Teams are Integrating AI into Live Products. Bruno Ferrari. Otto Sipe. Vikas Sharma.
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The Scalpels & Spreadsheets Podcast explores the future of healthcare through conversations with the builders, investors, operators, and clinicians shaping the industry. Scalpels & Spreadsheets brings together the global healthcare community through media, curated events, and meaningful connections. The podcast extends that mission beyond the room, amplifying the people and ideas driving healthcare forward when we’re not facilitating them in person.

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