AI-Powered Women's Health Startup Millie Launches Maia Agent, Prepares for AI-Forward Future

Women's health startup Millie has taken a significant step towards revolutionizing maternal care with the launch of its AI agent, Maia. This development comes as part of the company's broader strategy to integrate artificial intelligence into its healthcare services, positioning itself at the forefront of the AI revolution in women's health.

Maia: A Personalized AI Companion for Maternal Health

Maia, Millie's newly developed AI agent, represents a personalized and "always-on" approach to women's health support. Integrated into Millie's patient-facing mobile app, Maia allows patients to quickly find answers to their questions, manage appointments, and receive important reminders about their pregnancy care.

Anu Sharma, founder and CEO of Millie, emphasized the AI agent's role: "We think of Maia as being a patient companion that is available to patients through the Millie app and has the ability to query all the data that is available on the back end." This integration aims to reduce friction for patients, providing immediate responses to basic questions that would otherwise require waiting for patient navigators or sifting through extensive guides and FAQs.

Millie has prioritized patient safety, data privacy, and clinical quality in Maia's development. The AI agent customizes interactions for each patient, remembering past conversations, learning communication preferences, and adapting its guidance based on the patient's medical history with Millie.

Millie's Comprehensive AI Strategy and Data Platform Overhaul

The launch of Maia is just one component of Millie's broader AI strategy. Earlier this year, the company undertook a significant rebuild of its data and analytics platform, preparing for an AI-forward future. This overhaul involved unifying diverse data sets, including electronic health records, lab results, scheduling information, and business data, into a single, cohesive dataset.

Chase Schwalbach, senior vice president of product and technology at Millie, explained the significance of this rebuild: "Most legacy infrastructure was never designed for AI to access or understand that data. At Millie, we've built a centralized, AI-ready data platform that connects clinical, operational and patient-facing information in one place."

This new infrastructure allows for greater speed and scalability in AI applications compared to healthcare companies using legacy systems. Millie's approach enables real-time data analysis, with business users able to generate instant charts, spreadsheets, and deep analyses by asking questions in plain English.

The company is also exploring AI applications for clinical use, such as assisting clinicians with triage and prioritizing urgent patient needs. Additionally, Millie is utilizing ambient clinical documentation and charting tools to extract and structure data traditionally siloed in electronic medical records.

Expansion and Future Outlook

Since its launch in 2022, Millie has expanded its services beyond maternity care to include preconception counseling, gynecology services, and perimenopause and menopause care. The company has served 2,500 patients and operates two brick-and-mortar clinics in California, with plans to open between two and four new clinics next year, expanding beyond the state.

Millie's tech-first approach has garnered interest from health systems facing OB-GYN shortages and seeking innovative solutions in women's health. The company's ability to deliver growth with cost efficiency, coupled with its strong patient outcomes and experience scores, positions it as an attractive partner for health systems considering the "build versus buy" decision in addressing healthcare challenges.

As Millie continues to leverage AI and expand its services, it aims to close persistent care gaps in women's health, offering a model of care that is "more complete, more proactive and more right-sized," according to Sharma. With its recent $12 million series A funding round and its commitment to AI-driven innovation, Millie is poised to play a significant role in shaping the future of women's healthcare.