Lotus Health nabs $35M for AI doctor that sees patients for free

The population is increasing asking OpenAI’s ChatGPT and other health-related LLMs, often recognize that chatbots provide valuable clinical information.

KJ Dhaliwal (pictured left), who in 2019 sold South Asian dating show Dil Mil to $50 millionsays that he has been thinking about the inefficiency of the health care system in the United States since he was a child as a medical interpreter for his parents, and he saw the arrival of the LLM as an opportunity to do something about it.

In May 2024, he launched Lotus Health AI, a free medical assistant that is available 24/7 in 50 languages. On Tuesday, Lotus announced that it raised $ 35 million in a Series A round led by CRV and Kleiner Perkins, which brought the total amount to $ 41 million.

People are already talking to AI about their health, but Lotus goes one step further: it goes beyond that chat to support real-time health care, including diagnosis, prescriptions, and specialist referrals.

Basically, Lotus is building an AI doctor that works as a real medical aid, with a license to work in all 50 states, malpractice insurance, HIPAA compliant systems, and full access to patient records.

The main difference is that most of the work is done by AI, which is trained to ask the same questions that a doctor would.

Because AI models love it too it’s a nightmareThe company is always staffed by certified public doctors and institutions from top health institutions such as Stanford, Harvard, and UCSF to review the latest diagnoses, labs, and clinical guidelines.

Lotus has developed an AI model that, similar to OpenEvidenceconducts current evidence-based research with patient history and clinical responses to develop a treatment plan.

“AI is giving advice, but real doctors are signing,” Dhaliwal told TechCrunch.

Lotus realizes the limits of real care. For urgent care, Lotus directs patients to the nearest care center or emergency room. And if a case requires a physical exam, the platform will refer the patient to an in-person doctor, Dhaliwal said.

Outsourcing an important part of clinical decision-making to AI is a promising bet given the challenges of clinical management. For example, doctors only see patients in states where they are licensed.

As the general partner of CRV, Saar Gur, who led the collaboration and joined the company’s team, said: “There are many challenges, but it is not SpaceX that sends astronauts to the moon.”

Gur (pictured right), who is an early investor in DoorDash, Mercury, and Ring, is confident that the telemedicine methods implemented during the pandemic, combined with recent developments in AI, will allow Lotus to handle many of the management and engineering challenges.

“It’s a lot of flexibility,” Gur said. But for an investor like Gur, that’s the draw: Lotus is trying to rethink the entire primary care model.

At a time when primary care physicians are less needLotus says it can see 10 times more patients than a traditional practice, even though it limits each visit to 15 minutes.

The startup isn’t just creating an AI doctor. Lightspeed-backed Educational is one of the competitors. Lotus distinguishes itself – at least here – by offering all its services for free.

Dhaliwal said the businesses he pursues could include sponsored or subscription-based initiatives, but the current focus is on product development and patient engagement rather than revenue.