Startups

No more guppies. 3 healthcare investors who would kill it on Shark Tank

Ashton Kutcher has made plenty of shrewd investments in companies like Skype and has his own fund but there should be a healthcare investor for the new season.

Healthcare always gets a bad rap on Shark Tank. That the case even now, as the let’s-make-an-entrepreneur talent show begins cycling in guest investors in its seventh season. All we’re getting are Silicon Valley sycophants like Ashton Kucher.

Where’s the health? It’s a good time to give the Kutchers of the show the boot in favor of investors with some real healthcare chops.

Digital health is dripping into the marrow of America. Let’s get an investor on the show who could balance the Sharks with a healthcare investment pedigree but are just as high profile.

There aren’t tons of Damons and Barbaras in healthcare. But there are a few. Here’s who I’d like to see tell someone, “I’m out” on a Friday night.

Chamath Palihapitiya, the founder and managing partner of Social + Capital Partnership, is probably the best choice for a few reasons.

Why? His investments span technology and digital health. Like Mark Cuban, he owns a basketball team — the Golden State Warriors, who won the NBA Championship this year. He also worked at Facebook for four years as vice president of user growth for mobile and Internet.

Investments He has plenty of digital health startup investments such as Glooko as well as precision medicine company Syapse. A startup he co-founded, Better, is shutting its doors at the end of the month. So it shows he isn’t perfect, has a recent example to hold up about the enormous challenge of being an entrepreneur.

Ann Lamont is a managing partner at Oak Investment Partners and heads up a growth equity venture fund investing in healthcare IT and fintech called Oak HC/FT.

Why? Her no nonsense style on display at the Rock Health Summit investor panel combined with a conversational style and ability to clearly outline what healthcare investors are looking for would make a nice foil to what the show regulars currently offer. It would make for good television to see her clash with fellow sharks. She’d also be a great role model for young women aspiring to be VC investors.

Among investments she has worked on are BenefitFocus, Castlight Health, Candescent Health. She has built a track record of taking companies to an exit, be it an IPO or M&A deal 

Why not: Most of the companies she has worked with are business to business. Most of the entrepreneurs pitching the Sharks, particularly for healthcare, have a direct to consumer model. Lower profile than other contenders here.

Patrick Dempsey, aka Doctor McDreamy from Grey’s Anatomy, would make a solid choice.

Why? For one thing, Dempsey’s interest in healthcare isn’t just limited to his TV role. He’s an angel investor in CrowdMed.

The crowdsourcing business lets patients share their difficult-to-solve medical cases online, including information about their symptoms, medical history, and diagnostic test results, with a pool of medical experts and fellow patients. They collaborate on solving the case online using the company’s prediction market technology. Patients are encouraged to discuss the community’s diagnostic suggestions with their physician. They can offer cash rewards to spur more medical detectives to take on the case.

He’s popular enough to attract viewers and gorgeous enough to keep them. A little eye candy on Shark Tank couldn’t hurt. And with the plot developments on Grey’s Anatomy of late, let’s just say Dempsey will have plenty of free time on his hands.

Why not? He’s a little light on investment experience.

Photos: TechCrunch and Flickr user David Merrett

Shares0
Shares0