- Positive Development secured a $45M non-dilutive growth debt facility led by Silicon Valley Bank and Pinegrove to refinance credit and expand its autism diagnostics and therapy footprint.
- RISA Labs raised an $11.1M Series A co-led by Optum Ventures and Cencora to scale an AI platform that automates oncology admin workflows such as prior authorization and payer interactions.
- VieCure raised $43M led by Mitch Rales and Northpond Ventures to broaden adoption of its AI-driven Halo Intelligence platform in community oncology practices.
- The financings highlight investor demand for scalable, outcomes-oriented care models and AI that reduces payer and administrative friction.
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The recent funding rounds for Positive Development, RISA Labs, and VieCure underscore a few converging trends in health-tech financing in early 2026. First, there is a growing preference for non-dilutive capital structures such as debt or venture debt to support scaling without sacrificing equity—Positive Development, in particular, opted for a growth debt facility rather than equity, allowing it to consolidate its Series C momentum while expanding access to both Medicaid and commercial insurance payers without additional dilution.
Second, there is significant investor appetite toward AI and automation technologies that tackle operational challenges in care delivery, especially in areas historically burdened by complexity and variability—oncology workflows (RISA Labs and VieCure) and developmental therapy delivery (Positive Development). These are often modest margin areas with high friction (claim denials, prior authorizations, payer variability) which AI can help transform. The strong early user-outcomes reported—e.g. first-pass approval rates nearing 98% for RISA Labs, and patient sequencing and guideline compliance multiples improving for VieCure—suggest these models are gaining traction.
Strategic implications for investors include prioritizing companies that combine clinical domain expertise with outcomes data, integrate well with payer systems or insurance risk models, and can scale geographies cost-efficiently. Key risks remain: payer reimbursement variation (particularly Medicaid), regulatory changes (e.g. around data privacy and AI use), and the need for robust validation of clinical and operational outcomes. Open questions for due diligence: what are unit economics in lower intensity therapy models; how AI platforms maintain performance in diverse clinical settings; and what repayment/backlog risk exists for non-dilutive capital and debt facilities as care volumes evolve.
Supporting Notes
- Positive Development raised a $45 million non-dilutive debt facility supplied by Silicon Valley Bank and Pinegrove Venture Partners to refinance existing credit, expand diagnostics and therapy geographically, pursue acquisitions, and increase access via commercial and Medicaid plans.
- Positive Development’s model is based on Developmental Relationship-Based Interventions (DRBI), promoted as a lower-intensity, lower-cost alternative to classic ABA services. It recently raised $51.5 million in Series C, and has partnerships with Anthem Blue Cross & Blue Shield and Oklahoma Complete Health.
- RISA Labs closed $11.1 million in Series A financing, co-led by Cencora Ventures and Optum Ventures, with participation from Oncology Ventures, Z21 Ventures, and John Simon via Ventureforgood; aims at scaling its AI OS to cancer clinics, health systems, infusion networks, and specialty pharmacies.
- At live partner sites, RISA Labs is reporting ~80% reductions in administrative staff time, up to 40% fewer denials, first-pass approval rates near 97.8%, and turnaround times for prior authorizations dropping toward hours instead of days.
- VieCure raised $43 million led by Mitch Rales and Northpond Ventures with participation from Durable Capital, Socium Ventures, and Sator Grove; aims to expand its Halo Intelligence platform and community oncology network.
- VieCure currently manages care for nearly 30,000 patients through its AI-powered platform; claims include ~8× increase in tumor sequencing rates and ~2× increase in guideline-compliant treatment plans among its user base.