Healthcare AI startup Suki announced a new collaboration with Google Cloud on Wednesday, aiming to expand its offerings beyond clinical documentation. This partnership will leverage Google Cloud’s Vertex AI platform to develop patient summary and Q&A features, enhancing the tools available to clinicians.
Overview of Suki and Its Offerings
Suki’s flagship product, Suki Assistant, enables doctors to record patient visits and auto-generate clinical notes, alleviating the burden of manual documentation. Punit Soni, founder and CEO of Suki, emphasized that the company’s vision extends beyond just documentation, stating, “We were never really building a clinical documentation tool only; it was supposed to be an assistant.”
New Features in Development
With the integration of Google Cloud’s technology, Suki plans to introduce several new features:
- Patient Summary: Clinicians will quickly access a patient’s basic information, including age, chronic conditions, past prescriptions, and visit history, with a single click. This feature aims to save doctors 15 to 30 minutes typically spent searching for these details.
- Q&A Functionality: Doctors can query specific patient data through Suki’s platform, asking questions such as
- “Show me his A1C over the last three months as a graph.”
- “What vaccines did the patient take?”
- “When was his last electrocardiogram?”
These features are currently available to a select group of clinicians, with general availability expected early next year.
Addressing Healthcare Challenges
Soni noted that the administrative burdens placed on healthcare workers contribute significantly to burnout. Clinicians spend nearly 28 hours a week on administrative tasks, including about nine hours on documentation alone. Suki aims to relieve these pressures by providing solutions that streamline workflow and reduce the time spent on paperwork.
Market Context and Future Prospects
Suki’s technology is already in use by 350 health systems and clinics across the U.S., and the company has tripled its client base this year. These new features will differentiate Suki in a competitive market with rising demand for efficient documentation tools.
The healthcare sector is increasingly turning to AI solutions to optimize operations, and Suki’s collaboration with Google Cloud positions it well to capitalize on this trend. The startup also recently closed a $70 million funding round, reflecting strong investor interest in innovative healthcare technologies.
As Soni remarked, “Just like the internet happened, AI is also happening now,” underscoring the transformative potential of AI in healthcare.
Conclusion
Suki’s partnership with Google Cloud is a significant step towards enhancing its AI-driven tools for healthcare professionals. By developing features that streamline patient documentation and information retrieval, Suki aims to reduce administrative burdens and improve the overall efficiency of healthcare delivery. As the company prepares to launch these new capabilities, it is poised to make a meaningful impact on the healthcare technology landscape.
