Indian healthcare AI startup Qure.AI aiming for IPO in two years, CEO says

May 20 (Reuters) - Qure.AI, an India-based startup providing artificial intelligence tools to healthcare firms, is aiming to turn profitable in the next financial year and for an initial public offer (IPO) in two years, its CEO told Reuters.
The company, founded in 2016 and largely backed by AI firm Fractal Analytics, counts Peak XV Partners and Novo Nordisk's (NOVOb.CO), opens new tab Novo Holdings among its investors, and has raised $125 million in funding so far, CEO Prashant Warier said.
"We look to break even and be profitable next financial year. As we sort of get to that break-even...we can start planning. And maybe in two-and-a-half years or two years is the earliest we can do an IPO," he said last week.
He declined to elaborate on the firm's valuation. The firm was valued at $264 million as of November 2024, according to data from market intelligence platform Tracxn.
Qure.AI provides AI solutions in diagnostics for early detection of tuberculosis, lung cancer and stroke risks. Its global clients include AstraZeneca (AZN.L), opens new tab, and Medtronic and Johnson and Johnson MedTech in India.
The global market for AI in healthcare, valued at $14.92 billion in 2024, is expected to grow to $110 billion by 2030, according to market estimates.
AI is being rapidly adopted by healthcare service providers around the world for early detection of diseases and to streamline work for overburdened professionals, according to industry experts.
"We're growing at a rate of 60%-70% every year (in revenue) and I think we probably will accelerate in the next five years," Warier said, adding that they serve around 15 million patients annually.
QureAI derives about 25% of revenue from the United States, which is its largest market, and is also eyeing expansion in the market with further partnerships, he said.
The company also is focusing on on low-and middle-income countries in Latin America and Africa. India, however, is a much smaller market for the firm, contributing less than 5% of revenue.

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The Sun

13 minutes ago

• The Sun

National investigation launched into ‘failing' NHS maternity services as Wes Streeting apologises to ‘gaslit' families

HEALTH Secretary Wes Streeting has ordered a rapid investigation into NHS maternity care, stating 'it's clear something is going wrong' at mum and baby units across England. He made the call after meeting with parents whose infants died or were seriously injured due to hospital failings. 2 The review will begin with the worst performing maternity services in England and then look at the country as a whole, with a report due to be published in December. Mr Streeting said grieving families had been 'gaslit lied to, manipulated and damaged further' in their search for the truth due to trusts refusing to admit to failures in care. "For the past year, I have been meeting bereaved families from across the country who have lost babies or suffered serious harm during what should have been the most joyful time in their lives," he said. 'What they have experienced is devastating – deeply painful stories of trauma, loss, and a lack of basic compassion – caused by failures in NHS maternity care that should never have happened. "Their bravery in speaking out has made it clear: we must act – and we must act now." Though "the vast majority of births are safe and without incident", the Health Secretary said "it's clear something is going wrong". 'That's why I've ordered a rapid national investigation to make sure these families get the truth and the accountability they deserve, and ensure no parent or baby is ever let down again," Mr Streeting stated. He pledged to do "everything in [his] power" to prevent more families from suffering due to maternity service failings. The investigation will begin probing up to 10 of the most concerning maternity and neonatal units in the coming weeks to give affected families answers as quickly as possible, according to the Department of Health. This will include trusts in Leeds, Gloucester, Mid and South Essex and Sussex, with the other areas to be confirmed 'shortly'. Maternity deaths are at a 20-year high in Britain - here's what to do if you're worried about symptoms or want to lower your risk Mr Streeting added he'd be ordering investigations into individual cases of families in Leeds and Sussex who suffered from NHS failures. The second part of the investigation will be a 'system-wide' look at maternity and neonatal care. It aims to bring together lessons from past maternity inquiries - of which there have been many - to create one 'clear set of actions' improve NHS care at a national level. A National Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce, chaired by Mr Streeting, has also been set up, made up of experts and bereaved families. Meanwhile, a new digital system will be rolled out to all maternity services by November to flag potential safety concerns in trusts, and an anti-discrimination programme to tackle inequalities is being launched. Mr Streeting told the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) conference in London: 'Over the last year, I've been wrestling with how we tackle problems in maternity and neonatal units, and I've come to the realisation that while there is action we can take now, we have to acknowledge that this has become systemic. 'It's not just a few bad units. Up and down the country, maternity units are failing, hospitals are failing, trusts are failing, regulators are failing. 'There's too much obfuscation, too much passing the buck and giving lip service.' What was the 'biggest NHS maternity scandal'? Some 201 babies and nine mothers needlessly died in the biggest maternity scandal in NHS history, at The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust. An inquiry by top midwife Donna Ockenden found a litany of devastating errors, with the findings revealed in March 2022. It found maternity units were short-staffed for years and bosses refused to take responsibility for mistakes. Alongside the tragic deaths, 94 babies suffered life-changing brain injuries as a result of 'catastrophic' care. Nearly 1,500 families were devastated by death, injury and disability. The report looked at more than 1,800 complaints at the Midlands hospitals, with most from between 2000 and 2019. It found 40 per cent of stillbirths had not been investigated by the trust, similarly with 43 per cent of neonatal deaths. It led staff members to come forward and paint a picture of a "clique with a culture of undermining and bullying", where concerns were ignored by bosses. The investigation found an obsession with keeping caesarean section rates low and promoting "natural births" needlessly cost lives. Some women were even blamed for their own deaths, while major incidents were "inappropriately downgraded" to avoid scrutiny. Patient concerns were dismissed. The "toxic culture" was left unchecked for more than two decades. Ms Ockenden warned the failings identified by her report were "not unique" and called for all maternity units in England to be overhauled. The Health Secretary said "appalling" maternity care scandals had come to light over the last 15 years and that "the rate of late maternal deaths has been consistently rising". 'Too many children have died because of state failure and I will not allow it to continue under my watch," he stated. Mr Streeting apologised on behalf of the NHS, after meeting families around the country whose children have died or been injured. He said: 'I want to say publicly how sorry I am, sorry for what the NHS has put them through, sorry for the way they've been treated since by the state and sorry that we haven't put this right yet, because these families are owed more than an apology. "They're owed change, they're owed accountability and they're owed the truth.' The Health Secretary stopped short of launching a statutory public inquiry - despite it being the wish of some bereaved families - explaining that "rapid investigation" would get answers to families faster. But he said he would keep 'that option open'. Asked about the cost of the review, Mr Streeting said: 'I suspect it will be somewhat less than the enormous costs we pay in clinical negligence claims. 'Probably the most shocking statistic in this area is that we are paying out more in clinical negligence for maternity failures than we are spending on maternity services. That's how bad things are." He described the cost of the report as "a drop in the ocean compared to the price of failure". 'A line in the sand' Sir Jim Mackey, chief executive of NHS England, said: 'Despite the hard work of staff, too many women are experiencing unacceptable maternity care and families continue to be let down by the NHS when they need us most. 'This rapid national investigation must mark a line in the sand for maternity care – setting out one set of clear actions for NHS leaders to ensure high quality care for all. 'Transparency will be key to understanding variation and fixing poor care – by shining a spotlight on the areas of greatest failure we can hold failing trusts to account. 'Each year, over half a million babies are born under our care and maternity safety rightly impacts public trust in the NHS – so we must act immediately to improve outcomes for the benefit of mothers, babies, families and staff.' The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) said maternity services are 'at, or even beyond, breaking point'. RCM chief executive Gill Walton said: 'Every woman and family should leave maternity and neonatal services whole, happy and healthy. 'Yet we know that, for far too many, that isn't their experience. 'Systemic failings and a lack of attention to the warning signs have let those families down and let down the hardworking staff who are trying so hard to provide the care they deserve. 'Everyone involved in maternity services: the midwifery community, obstetricians, anaesthetists, sonographers and, of course, the women and families in their care; knows that maternity services are at, or even beyond, breaking point. 'This renewed focus and commitment by the Health Secretary to deliver change is welcome, and we will do everything we can to support him in doing so.' Professor Ranee Thakar, president of the RCOG, said: 'The maternity workforce is on its knees, with many now leaving the profession.' She said that 'for years, maternity units have had too few staff, too little time for training and lacked modern equipment and facilities, resulting in women and babies being harmed.' She urged the Government to 'not to lose sight of funding and workforce shortages within this'.

Telegraph

28 minutes ago

• Telegraph

‘I had to fight to get a GP appointment for my mum – the system has to change'

It would only take a simple phone call, Edward Lane assumed. His elderly deaf mother had found a lump in her breast and needed to see a doctor. Understandably anxious, she asked her son to make the appointment as she was unable to make phone calls and struggled with the online booking form. It turned out there was nothing simple about the process at all. An assault course across the Himalayas might have proved easier. On calling his mother's surgery in Wokingham, Berkshire, the finance director, 60, was told he would need a signed letter from her permitting him to make an appointment. When he dropped that off in the afternoon he was told he could not make one in person and would need to call. When he went home and did that – which felt ludicrous in itself – he was informed appointments were made at 8am. When 8am the following day arrived and he finally got through there were no appointments left. Only then when he went straight down to the surgery again in desperation did an apologetic practice manager surreptitiously lead him into a side room and hand him an appointment for the next day. Lane got the sense they were speaking in private because she couldn't let other patients see the breach in protocol. They might want an appointment, too. 'They said: 'We've had to break the process for you',' he recalls. 'We should not have to be assertive' 'It's like, why? Why am I having to fight somebody on this?' Lane reflects, exasperated. 'Once that log jam was broken it was fine. The doctor was great, very reassuring, it was not a serious problem. But it's trying to get through, trying to navigate through; to actually get my mum to see a doctor was just so difficult. And you know, we should not have to be assertive, but sometimes it's almost like you're forced down that street.' Earlier this month, The Telegraph published a powerful account written anonymously by a GP's receptionist highlighting in disturbing detail the barrage of abuse she endures daily as she struggles to manage the 8am doling out of appointments at her understaffed surgery. 'Five or six times every single day I'm called a name or sworn at,' she wrote, replaying how one patient, aggravated he could not get a same-day appointment for a sick note review, came to the surgery and threatened her, forcing her to press the panic button. 'Since the pandemic the demand for appointments has probably doubled and with it the abuse we get on the front desk.' Over 1,000 readers responded, both sickened by the reality of what GP receptionists are subjected to, but also expressing their side of this broken process. A process which breeds frustration, as receptionists on the frontline field high demand with fewer GPs, causing patients to wait on hold for excessive periods – if they are not stopped from calling at all. Lane was one of those readers. He is softly spoken but his distress still sounds raw as he recounts the bizarre ordeal he faced in 2021. It is clear just recalling it brings back the sense of helplessness he felt at a moment of real concern for his vulnerable mum, then 82. 'I explained three times [she could not make an appointment herself],' he says. When the receptionist finally asked for the letter he organised it the same day, admitting it felt 'overkill'. 'It's not like I was discussing any medical issues, I just wanted to make an appointment,' he says. To then be told as he stood with it in hand he still needed to telephone was a moment beyond belief, he says. 'I said: 'This is the letter, and now I'm going to go home and I'm going to call you and make an appointment',' he describes, his frustration pointed. To then realise that could only be done the next morning was beyond exasperating. 'I was polite, because you have to be, but at the same time…' While abuse is never acceptable, he could have been forgiven for dropping the niceties. It was only when he was then told there were no appointments left he felt he had no choice but to become, in his words, 'assertive', returning to the surgery and eventually getting that side-room appointment. A broken system Did he feel for the receptionists? 'Very much,' he says. 'They're following the processes they are told to have… I kept saying, 'I'm not angry with you, it is the process that is wrong'. But somebody needs to change the process because it's broken.' He adds: 'I never raised my voice, but… if I'm not being assertive, then we're not going to get my mother seen by a doctor… And some people can't do that.' He adds: 'If I wasn't around, then she would not be treated.' Patrick Hodson, 58, also got in touch with his own battle-weary story. The retiree from Tunbridge Wells, Kent, became so frustrated after calling to make a GP appointment only to find himself stuck at 'position number eight in the queue' for nearly an hour, he decided to cycle to his practice while still on hold. He was still 'number eight' when he arrived – and found the receptionists were not on the phones. 'It wasn't moving. I wasn't getting any higher,' he recalls. 'I had the phone on speaker-phone so I put it in my pocket and cycled over there, about a mile and a half away.' The hold message parroted all the way, continuing as he walked in. 'I was looking at them thinking, well, neither of you are on the phone dealing with call number zero, and neither of you are answering the person in position number one,' he recalls. 'I said, 'I've cycled down here, you're not answering the phone'. They didn't want to engage with me really, apart from to say 'we're very busy' or something like that.' He adds: 'You do feel they consider the people queuing outside the little receptionist window a bit of a bloody nuisance, really. That's how I felt. I'm sure they don't feel like that, but that's the impression given to people who have to deal with this regularly.' At this time, two years ago, Hodson was recovering from a brain injury sustained in a car accident. He had been facing what he calls the 'feeling of doom – that, oh god, I've got to call the doctor' feeling for some time. Before this incident he had spent an hour waiting to speak to a receptionist before giving up, only to learn later the phones were not answered during lunchtime. No message stating this had been played. Nowadays he tends to delay contacting them: the process, including filling in an online form before calling, which is requested, is especially difficult because of the symptoms of his injury. 'I probably put off arranging to see a doctor,' he says. 'It's very much a disincentive.' Mandatory online booking and 'wretched forms' Amanda Stephens from Somerset feels the same. The 62-year-old told The Telegraph she has not been to see her GP since before the pandemic because the surgery does not allow a phone call or a visit to make an appointment. All bookings must be made online. 'If you think, well, I'll circumnavigate it and I'll actually go into the surgery, they hand you an iPad and tell you to fill in the same online form,' she says. She explains: 'I've got chronic joint pain. I do wonder if I've got some kind of rheumatic issue but I literally cannot stomach the thought of having to fill in their wretched forms. Then I know what will happen, I'll get an appointment with a nurse, and I don't want an appointment with a nurse. I want to see my GP because I want to talk it through with somebody I know and trust.' The key issue for her is the 'whole list of questions' that need to be answered on the form. 'Have you got this? Have you got that? Have you got the other – if so, a GP appointment isn't appropriate,' she says. 'They're just pushing people onto 111 or the A&E service.' She sounds angry but she of all people has sympathy for the receptionists – she was one herself for a decade, from 1997. She rarely faced abuse because she could chat to patients and offer on-the-day or next day appointments. 'I feel sorry for the current receptionists because they're only carrying out practice policy,' she says. 'They're the frontline, they're going to get the abuse.' And she believes the online system will be creating more work for them. 'It must be creating a whole load of extra admin.' An 'unsustainable' workload GPs have stressed they are providing more appointments and 'working harder than ever', but with a declining workforce – an 'unsustainable' and often increasingly complex workload which is the result of decades of under-funding and lack of workforce planning, they say. Speaking last year, Dr Victoria Tzortziou Brown, the vice chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: 'The bottom line is we don't have enough GPs to keep up with the growing need for our care, and patients are feeling the impact most.' She added: 'We need significant investment and dramatic efforts to increase the GP workforce, especially retaining GPs, or things will only get worse.' Dr Amanda Doyle, the national director for primary care and community services at NHS England, has emphasised that 'improving access to general practice is an NHS priority', adding: 'We know there's still more to do to make it easier for patients to contact and see their local GP team, which includes making even better use of new technology to improve patient care.' She stressed that almost every GP practice in England now has a digital telephone system. Earlier this year she also welcomed increased funding to the GP contract, following the decision of many GPs to work to rule last summer. 'This is the first time in four years that the GP contract has been accepted as proposed and I hope it will be seen as positive for practices, GP teams and patients...,' she said. The Government has said all practices in England will have to allow patients to request appointments online all day from later this year. A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson stressed the Government's recognition of a broken system and the need to create more appointments. They said: 'This Government inherited an intolerable situation where too many patients face long waits for GP appointments or cannot get them at all. This is unacceptable and we understand how stressful and frustrating this can be. That is why we are cutting red tape and investing more in our NHS – we have already put over 1,700 extra GPs into general practice to deliver more appointments. We have also provided the biggest boost to GP funding in years – an extra £889 million on top of the existing budget for general practice in 2025 to 2026 – and just announced £102 million to upgrade and modernise GP surgeries.' But in the meantime, the broken system means no-one wins. 'I think there's an awful lot of fobbing off going on,' says Stephens. 'And I think that fobbing off takes time – time that could be being used more productively.'

The Independent

an hour ago

• The Independent

New maternity investigation to look at 10 ‘worst services'

A new maternity investigation is set to focus on the 10 'worst performing' maternity services in England. Leeds and Sussex maternity services will be examined as part of the investigation, officials confirmed after Health Secretary Wes Streeting announced a national investigation into maternity services. There have been a series of maternity scandals in recent years, with official reviews launched into a number of services including those in Nottingham; East Kent; Shrewsbury and Telford and Morecambe Bay. Officials said these independent reviews found similar failings in compassionate care – including the failure to listen to women, concerns over safety and issues with leadership and culture. Bereaved families in other areas have also called for their own inquiries, including families in Sussex, Leeds and Oxford. The Department of Health and Social Care said the new investigation will consist of two parts. The first will investigate up to 10 of the most concerning maternity and neonatal units, including Sussex, in the coming weeks to give affected families answers as quickly as possible, according to the Department of Health. The second will be a 'system-wide' look at maternity and neonatal care, uniting lessons from past maternity inquiries to create one clear set of actions designed to improve national NHS care. Officials have confirmed there will be local reviews into services in Leeds and Sussex, with the other areas to be confirmed 'shortly'. The Department of Health and Social Care said that during the next month NHS England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey and chief nursing officer Duncan Burton will meet the trusts of greatest concern, including Leeds, Gloucester, Mid and South Essex and Sussex. It is expected that during these meetings the top NHS officials will 'hold them to account for improvement'. Wes Streeting said he would be looking at individual cases of families in Leeds and Sussex who suffered from NHS failures. Speaking at the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists conference in London, he said: 'We'll bring in a package of measures to start taking action now, increasing accountability across the board, and bringing in the cultural change we need to see. 'Within the next month, the NHS chief executive, Jim Mackey, and the chief nursing officer, Duncan Burton, will meet the trusts of greatest concern, including Leeds, Gloucester, Mid and South Essex and Sussex, to hold them to account for improvement.' He added: 'I'm currently discussing with Leeds families the best way to grip the challenges brought to light in that trust by their campaigning, reports in the media and the latest CQC report, and I'll be ordering an investigation into nine specific cases identified by families in Sussex who are owed a thorough account of what happened in those cases.' A spokesperson for Families Failed by OUH Maternity Services – a campaign calling for an investigation into maternity services at Oxford University Hospitals – said: 'We are pleased to see Wes Streeting launch a national investigation into maternity services – it is vital and long overdue. 'We urge him to include Oxford University Hospitals Trust as one of the 10 units. 'Over 500 Oxfordshire families who have suffered serious harm in the care of OUH maternity services have joined together to raise awareness of the devastating failures happening in the trust – highlighting the need for an investigation.' The Nottingham Affected Families Group said in a statement: 'Nottingham families have had their lives destroyed by the very people who they trusted during their most vulnerable time of life. 'Our lives stopped one day, and we will forever be broken. We will forever have to live with the harm, trauma, and the many missing children, mothers and siblings. In no other walk of life would this be acceptable without some form of accountability. 'We welcome the unique chance to work face-to-face with Wes Streeting on these issues. However, we believe a rapid review will only reinforce the need for a public inquiry, as the current plan lacks enforceable actions for real improvement.' Emily Barley, spokeswoman for the Maternity Safety Alliance, added: 'The systemic problems in maternity care are serious, enduring, and resistant to change, and can only be fixed by a statutory public inquiry. We urge Wes Streeting and Keir Starmer to order one without any further delay.' The NHS paid out £2.8 billion in compensation last year, with 41% of all payouts related to maternity care, according to data obtained by the Liberal Democrats from the House of Commons Library which was published earlier this year.