Finance in the AI-Driven Healthcare Era: Building Resilient and Sustainable Models for Growth and Innovation
CXOToday has engaged in an exclusive interview with Harsh Vaish, Chief Financial Officer, Qure.ai
How do you see the role of finance evolving in healthcare, particularly with the increasing integration of AI technologies?
Finance plays an increasingly pivotal role in the healthcare AI industry, steering companies toward building predictable, repeatable, and profitable business models that can thrive as the industry evolves. Today, finance collaborates closely with business and technology teams to clarify investments in “Run-the-Business” (RTB) versus “Change-the-Business” (CTB) initiatives. Predictive analytics around P&L and cash flow empower more informed decision-making.
Within our finance function, we are driving innovative revenue models—such as outcome-based pricing—to support value-based healthcare. AI is also becoming a powerful tool in managing our revenue cycle, treasury, and expenses, making internal processes more robust and efficient. With technology enhancing operational efficiency, finance can now dedicate greater focus to business partnerships and advancing key strategic initiatives.
Qure.ai recently secured significant funding. How are you leveraging these resources to drive innovation, particularly in lung cancer and stroke care?
We recently closed a $65 million Series D funding round led by LightSpeed and 360One Asset and have a clearly articulated capital deployment plan. We will
leverage these resources primarily in the following areas:
- Expanding our US operations: Our focus for the US market will be advancing early detection of lung cancer and patient We launched our lung cancer care continuum for the US early this year. We will also focus more on market access through pharma partnerships and collaboration with provider systems.
- Inorganic Growth: Acquiring companies with complementary products and/or markets in which we operate. We will continue to explore synergistic adjacencies.
- Investments in Foundational Models: We are working on multi-modal foundation models that will be capable of processing text and various medical imaging modalities (X-rays, CTs, MRIs, and ultrasound).
- Continued Expansion in Global Health: We are currently in more than 3,100 hospitals across 90+ countries, and we expect this business vertical to generate adequate cash for sustained growth.
- Strengthening our Stroke Business Vertical: Our GTM strategy here is to continue generating Real World Evidence (RWE) and building partnerships with medical device companies. The focus remains on early and timely diagnosis of stroke patients for improved treatment outcomes and quality of life post-treatment.
As a company, we aim to impact a billion patients worldwide through the power of AI.
Can you share insights on navigating mergers and acquisitions in the health tech sector? What challenges and opportunities are unique to this space?
The health tech sector is rapidly evolving, with few established players. While many companies are innovating in this space, finding the right partner for collaboration is essential. Although the sector still presents opportunities for early movers, there are also challenges, such as achieving a clear product-market fit (PMF) and building scalable commercial models. Regulatory approvals and adherence to data privacy laws are critical factors to consider when evaluating target companies.
As the industry matures and competition intensifies, sustaining non-linear, year-on- year growth could become challenging. While a target company’s core product IP is crucial, it’s equally important to assess the sustainability of its revenue model and long-term user adoption. Indicators of this include deep integration of technology within health systems and the value it brings to multiple stakeholders.
For any M&A to succeed, business and cultural alignment, along with synergy benefits, must be critically evaluated throughout the process.
From your perspective as CFO, how does ai balance regulatory compliance with the need to innovate rapidly in the evolving healthcare landscape?
Corporate governance and a consistent focus on compliance in a global environment are essential. As finance leaders, we must streamline and automate our processes while partnering with the right organizations to ensure compliance supports—rather than hinders—our business growth. We pride ourselves on being a capital-efficient company with a dual focus on innovation and expansion in therapeutic areas and markets where we have a clear product-market fit. We are securing incremental regulatory approvals across new clinical findings, products, and markets, all while investing heavily in R&D.
We are currently one of the most regulatory-compliant brands in the industry, with 18 FDA-cleared findings and 60+ CE EU MDR clearances. We are also the most FDA- approved AI solution in lung health, our major therapeutic area. The regulatory dominance we enjoy stems from years of dedicated hard work from our regulatory team, working closely with our technology and business teams. The main focus of the leadership at Qure is to enable our teams with the resources required to continue pushing the boundaries of AI in healthcare. Building a culture that encourages innovation will remain a central priority as we move forward.
How important are strategic partnerships in driving both organic and inorganic growth for Qure.ai, and what role does financial planning play in fostering these collaborations?
Strategic partnerships with pharmaceutical companies, medical device firms, and policy-shaping organizations play a pivotal role in establishing AI as essential to the healthcare industry. These collaborations are driving the creation of new clinical pathways, where AI enables diagnoses that are faster, more accurate, and more cost- effective. Fiscal discipline and sustainable revenue models help companies fully leverage these partnerships, while finance teams focus on maximizing return on investment (ROI) through a defined roadmap for organic and inorganic growth over 60 days, 180 days, and two years.
Any final thoughts you’d like to share with us?
As a finance professional, my two cents to all my fellow colleagues would be to focus on building sustainable businesses with a clear line of sight to healthy returns for all our stakeholders. While revenue growth and profitability are important, businesses also need to generate healthy cash flows. The finance function has evolved over the years from a support role focused on cost control and financial reporting to a strategic partner driving value creation, innovation, and digital transformation. The future of finance is increasingly driven by data analytics, AI, and real-time insights, enabling businesses to remain agile, resilient, and growth-oriented. Thank you.
