Med Tech Gurus

What happens when one of the toughest challenges in vascular medicine—severe arterial calcification—meets breakthrough engineering? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus , we sit down with Dr. Robert Chisena, Co-Founder and CTO of Amplitude Vascular Systems (AVS). With a PhD in mechanical engineering and a portfolio of five patents, Robert has dedicated his career to tackling one of the most stubborn...

What if solving a widespread medical condition didn't require surgery, expensive implants, or harsh medications—but could be done by simply putting on a sock? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus , we sit down with Isaac Oppenheim, CEO and Founder of Zida, a company pioneering wearable neuromodulation at the intersection of aging, textiles, and healthcare. Inspired by his grandfather's struggle with...

What happens when groundbreaking medtech isn't enough—when success depends on how well physicians and health plans actually adopt it? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus , we sit down with Dr. Shannon Decker, PhD, MBA, M.Ed., Founder & CEO of VBC1. With over 25 years of experience in healthcare transformation—including 17 years in Medicare, Medicaid, quality improvement, and risk adjustment—Shannon...

What if the lines of code you wrote weren't just running a program—but keeping someone's heart beating? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus , we sit down with Wade Demmer , Vice President of Research and Development for Cardiac Pacing Therapies at Medtronic , whose career journey began with his grandmother's pacemaker and led him to help pioneer some of the world's most impactful cardiac devices, in...

What happens when decades-old surgical tools finally get a 21st-century upgrade? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus , we sit down with Andy Chang , Chief Commercial Officer at BVI , to explore how innovation is reshaping ophthalmology. Andy takes us behind the launch of Leos , a next-generation glaucoma laser platform designed to be faster, smarter, and more intuitive—giving surgeons precision whil...

In an era where telehealth is often reduced to quick, one-off visits, Ovatient CEO Michael Dalton is charting a different course—one that blends digital access with the trust, continuity, and whole-person focus of traditional care. With deep roots inside health systems like MetroHealth and MUSC, Michael shares how Ovatient was built "by health systems, for health systems" to move beyond transactio...

What happens when a medtech founder starts college at 12, launches their first company at 9, and grows up to help clients secure over $1 billion in funding? You get Elizabeth Chabe, CEO of High Touch Group. In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, Elizabeth shares how she helps science-driven companies translate complex innovations into stories that resonate with investors, regulators, and clinicians. S...

Every minute counts in cardiology—but for too many patients, the wait to see a specialist is measured in weeks. In this episode of Med Tech Gurus , Dr. Jeff Wessler, cardiologist and CEO of Heartbeat Health, shares how his team is transforming heart care with a virtual-first model. By combining telehealth, remote diagnostics, and evidence-based protocols, Heartbeat Health is tackling one of medici...

When it comes to serious illness, early detection can be the difference between a difficult battle and a manageable path forward. But what if advanced diagnostics didn't require a referral, radiation, or even a reason to feel sick? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus , we sit down with Mike Wernli, Chief Operating Officer at Craft Health, to explore how they're flipping the script on traditional hea...

What if diagnosing coronary artery disease, pulmonary hypertension, and heart failure didn't require a hospital, a specialist, or even invasive testing? In this episode, Adrian Lam , CEO of Corvista Health, shares how their FDA-cleared, AI-powered platform is transforming frontline cardiac care—delivering accurate, non-invasive diagnostics in under 30 minutes. Adrian discusses the delicate balance...

What if a discreet sensor could quietly prevent one of healthcare's most common—and dangerous—IV injuries? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, Jaclyn Lautz Ph. D., COO of IV Watch, takes us inside the journey of building a global standard of care. Jaclyn shares how her team navigated the EU MDR maze, achieved regulatory approvals across 16 countries, and proved their technology's impact through pow...

What if a simple design shift could save lives in the most chaotic environments? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, Dr. Irena King, neuroscientist, engineer, and CEO of Surgicure Technologies, shares how she's transforming emergency airway management with the Horseshoe—a novel device born out of battlefield necessity and refined through deep clinical collaboration. Irena reveals the hard lessons o...

What if the key to fixing pharma's toughest challenges wasn't more complexity—but more clarity? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, Shetal Vyas, SVP of Commercial Strategy & Development at Ardelyx, joins us to explore how digital-first strategies are reshaping how we bring therapies to patients. Shetal unpacks how to overcome the $200 billion patent cliff, reframe customer engagement, and build sca...

What if we could detect Alzheimer's disease before the first memory fades? In this powerful episode of Med Tech Gurus, Dr. Maria-Magdalena Patru, MD, PhD—who leads the neurology medical team at Roche Diagnostics US—explains how early diagnosis is being radically transformed through CSF and blood-based biomarker innovations. With Alzheimer's affecting over 7 million Americans, Dr. Patru outlines ho...

What if the future of clinical trials wasn't just faster—but dramatically more human-centered, efficient, and aligned with real-world outcomes? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, Meri Beckwith, co-founder of Lindus Health, shares how a broken experience during a COVID trial sparked a revolution in trial design. Lindus is reimagining the traditional CRO with fixed-cost models, milestone-based payme...

What if you could cut your product development time in half—and avoid the regulatory landmines that derail most startups? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, Marcel Botha, CEO and Founder of 10XBeta, reveals how his Brooklyn-based venture studio helps innovators turn bold ideas into compliant, fundable, and scalable medical technologies. With deep expertise in design, engineering, and regulatory st...

What happens when clinical strategy, bioinformatics, and market access all live under one roof? Meet Tyler O'Malley, VP at Exagen, who shares how this rare triad is driving innovation in autoimmune diagnostics. In this episode, Tyler reveals how real-world data fuels product strategy, why storytelling is key to market access, and how diagnostic innovators can scale in a payer-driven world. We expl...

Behavioral health is in crisis—not just from rising demand, but from the chaos of inconsistent care models, fragmented data, and outdated systems. In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, Jim Szyperski, CEO of Acuity Behavioral Health, shares how his team is bringing much-needed structure and accountability to inpatient psychiatric care.   Backed by a $1.5 million seed round and in collaboration with he...

What if we could finally put real answers behind the brain fog, fatigue, and lingering symptoms so many patients still face post-COVID? In this episode, Dr. Nigel McCracken, Chief Operating Officer at Virax Biolabs, returns to Med Tech Gurus to reveal how their groundbreaking ViraxImmune platform is decoding the hidden dysfunctions of the immune system. With major NHS-led trials underway and U.S....

Billions are being poured into healthcare AI, yet most innovations never make it past pilot projects. Why? And more importantly—how do we fix it? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus , we sit down with Marco Smit, serial entrepreneur, life sciences executive, and AI commercialization expert. With leadership experience at Roche, Genentech, Gesund.ai, CareSyntax, and now Domelabs.ai, Marco has seen the...

What if we could finally crack the code on treating brain cancer by opening the door that's blocked 98% of therapies? In this episode, Dr. Michael Canney, Chief Scientific Officer of Carthera, reveals how SonoCloud—a revolutionary ultrasound implant—temporarily opens the blood-brain barrier to deliver chemotherapy directly to tumors like glioblastoma. With over 100 patients enrolled in a Phase III...

What if the key to solving the provider burnout crisis wasn't adding more hours in the day—but using technology to give them back? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, we meet David Norris, Co-Founder and CEO of Affinion Health. David shares how his company is building an AI-powered clinical inbox that helps clinicians manage the overwhelming flood of lab results, patient messages, and admin tasks....

What if surgeons could eliminate the guesswork from complex procedures and walk into the OR with a personalized, pre-fitted solution ready to go? In this episode, we meet Vikram Ahuja, Co-Founder and CEO of OsseoLabs, who is transforming orthopedic and maxillofacial surgery using AI and 3D printing. Vikram reveals how his platform builds patient-specific implants using biomechanical data—dramatica...

What turns a brilliant idea into a market-ready medical device? Jennifer Palinchik, CEO of SageMar Medical, has spent over two decades guiding innovators through that exact journey. In this episode, Jennifer shares the critical factors that determine whether your device gets adopted—or ends up on the shelf. From navigating regulatory hurdles and defining market value to aligning R&D with commercia...

Gurus, what if treating prostate cancer no longer required surgery, blood loss, or hospital stays? In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Arun Menawat, CEO of Profound Medical, who is leading a bold transformation in prostate cancer care. With Tulsa Pro—an AI-powered, MRI-guided, incision-free therapy—his team is challenging the surgical status quo head-on. Arun shares how his journey through imagi...