ViVE 2026 Speaker Analysis - DaisyAI Targeting
Conference: ViVE 2026 | Feb 22-25 | Los Angeles, CA Prepared: 2026-02-20 Source: https://hlth.com/events/vive/speakers/ Total Speakers Scanned: ~243 (main program)
How to Use This
Speakers are organized by relevance to DaisyAI's three goals at ViVE:
- Health plan pipeline - Find buyers for UR/clinical AI services
- Investor conversations - Warm up existing pipeline + meet new funds
- Advisor/credibility network - People who amplify or validate our story
Priority ratings: Must Meet > High Value > Worth a Conversation
TIER 1: POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS (Health Plan / Payer Executives)
These are people at organizations that buy UR/UM tools or could hire DaisyAI for FDE engagements. This is your #1 priority at the conference.
| Priority | Name | Title | Company | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Must Meet | Dr. Ali Khan MD | CMO, Medicare | Aetna | Payer CMO at CVS/Aetna. Directly owns medical necessity decisions. Dream buyer. |
| Must Meet | Dr. Kay Judge MD | CMO, Medicare | Blue Shield of CA | Payer CMO. BSC is a top CA plan. UR is her domain. |
| Must Meet | Dr. Monica Soni MD | CMO, Chief Deputy Executive | Covered California | State exchange CMO. Oversees UR policy for the largest ACA marketplace. |
| Must Meet | Julie Durham | Chief Digital Officer | UnitedHealth Group | CDO at the largest payer in the US. Owns digital/AI strategy. |
| Must Meet | Erin Satterwhite | CEO, Optum Insight Provider | Optum | Runs the Optum unit that sells into the same space we do. Competitor intelligence or partnership. |
| Must Meet | Ashok Chennuru | Chief Data/Digital AI Transformation Officer | Elevance Health | Anthem's parent. Leading AI transformation at a top-5 payer. |
| Must Meet | Gigi Yuen PhD | Chief Data & AI Officer | Cohere Health | Cohere does AI-driven prior auth. Direct competitor/peer. Know what they're doing. |
| High Value | Catherine Anderson | SVP, Health Optimization Strategy | UnitedHealth Group | "Health optimization" at UHG = utilization management. |
| High Value | Ratnakar Lavu | EVP and CDIO | Elevance Health | Second Elevance leader. Two angles into same org. |
| High Value | Dawn Maroney | President | Alignment Health Plan | Mid-size plan president. More accessible than UHG. Potential early adopter. |
| High Value | Dr. Lia Rodriguez MD | VP, PSS Product, Payor Solutions | CVS Health | Builds payer products at CVS. Could be a buyer or partner. |
| High Value | Trisha Rawlings | Head of Digital Market Strategy | Cigna/Evernorth | Digital strategy at major payer. |
| High Value | Dr. Nolan Chang MD | EVP, Strategy & Corp Dev | The Permanente Federation | Kaiser's physician group strategy lead. Kaiser is a massive integrated payer-provider. |
| High Value | Verlon Johnson MPA | EVP | Acentra Health | Acentra manages Medicaid UR for state programs. Direct buyer. |
| High Value | Dr. Sanjay Doddamani MD, MBA | Founder and CEO | Guidehealth | VBC-focused health plan services. Potential customer or partner. |
| Worth It | Ashley Lumpkin | Head of Health Insurance Advisory | Ipsos | Payer consulting. Knows who's buying what. Intel source. |
| Worth It | Vik Wadhwani | Chief Product & Transformation Officer | NCQA | NCQA sets quality standards payers follow. Shapes UR requirements. |
| Worth It | Dr. Reshma Gupta MD | Chief of Population Health & Accountable Care | University of California Health | UC system population health. Payer-adjacent. |
| Worth It | Tony Ambrozie | SVP | CVS Pharmacy | CVS enterprise. Third angle into CVS/Aetna. |
| Worth It | Olivia Deitcher | Founder & CEO | Zest Health | Health plan navigation startup. Peer/potential partner. |
| Worth It | Priyanka Agarwal MD, MBA | Co-Founder and CEO | HealthEx | Health plan analytics. Adjacent space. |
| Worth It | Patrick Sheehan | VP, Value-Based Care | Withings | VBC lens, connected devices payer partnerships. |
TIER 2: INVESTORS
Cross-reference with your existing pipeline. Norwest is already in your funnel.
| Priority | Name | Title | Fund | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Must Meet | Irem Rami | Partner | Norwest | Already in your pipeline (Feb 6 meeting). Face time at ViVE is huge. |
| Must Meet | Julie Yoo | General Partner | a16z | Top-tier. Bio+Health fund. Wrote extensively about healthcare AI. a16z brand opens every door. |
| Must Meet | Nancy Brown | General Partner | Oak HC/FT | Healthcare-focused fund. Perfect stage fit. |
| Must Meet | Maddie Hilal | VP | Oak HC/FT | Second Oak HC/FT contact. VPs do the deal work. |
| High Value | Cathy Gao | Partner | Sapphire Ventures | Growth-stage but good to plant seed early. |
| High Value | Ben Robbins | General Partner | GV | Google Ventures. Tier 1 brand. |
| High Value | Susana Rojas | Investor | Index Ventures | European fund with US healthcare interest. |
| High Value | Neil Patel | Head of Ventures | Redesign Health | Studio model, builds health companies. Could be strategic. |
| High Value | Lenard Marcus | General Partner | Edison Partners | Growth equity, healthcare focus. |
| High Value | Michelle Snyder | Partner | McKesson Ventures | Strategic CVC. McKesson touches every part of healthcare. |
| High Value | Uma Veerappan | VP | Flare Capital Partners | Health IT-focused early stage fund. |
| High Value | Erica Murdock | Managing Director | Unseen Capital | Diverse founder focus. |
| Worth It | Kanyi Maqubela | Managing Partner | Kindred Ventures | Early stage, generalist but health-interested. |
| Worth It | Jonathan Machado | Managing Partner | M2 Equity Partners | Healthcare PE. |
| Worth It | Dr. Jenny Yu MD | Founding Partner | Sixth House | Physician-investor. |
| Worth It | Rachel Springate | Co-Founding Partner | Muse Capital | Early stage. |
| Worth It | Terri Burke MBA | Senior Partner | Intuitive Ventures | Intuitive Surgical's fund. More surgical focus but CVC networks are valuable. |
| Worth It | Ben Freeberg | Founder, Managing Partner | Oncology Ventures | Niche but connected. |
| Worth It | Ken Bahk PhD, MBA | Co-Founder | Health Equity Innovation Partners | Mission-aligned if equity angle resonates. |
| Worth It | Dr. David Okonkwo MD | EVP | UPMC Enterprises | Health system VC arm. |
| Worth It | Dr. Lawrence Cohen PhD | CEO | Health2047 | AMA's innovation subsidiary. Influential network. |
TIER 3: ADVISORS & CREDIBILITY NETWORK
People who could advise DaisyAI, validate your approach, or open doors.
Healthcare AI Leaders (Peers & Potential Advisors)
| Priority | Name | Title | Company | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Must Meet | Syed Mohiuddin | Head of Healthcare | Anthropic | You're building on Claude. This person is your vendor relationship. |
| Must Meet | Dr. Brian Anderson MD | President & CEO | CHAI | Coalition for Health AI. Sets governance standards. Advisory board gold. |
| High Value | Munjal Shah | Co-founder and CEO | Hippocratic AI | Healthcare AI peer. Similar narrative (AI for clinical workflows). |
| High Value | Nikhil Buduma | Co-Founder and CEO | Ambience Healthcare | AI for clinical documentation. Peer, not competitor. Share notes. |
| High Value | Dr. Shiv Rao MD | CEO, Co-Founder | Abridge | Same world (AI for clinical work). Well-funded, well-known. |
| High Value | Dr. Anil Jain MD | Chief Innovation Officer | Innovaccer | Health data/AI platform. Could be infrastructure partner. |
| High Value | Dr. Farzad Mostashari MD | Co-Founder and CEO | Aledade | Former National Coordinator for Health IT. Massive influence in value-based care. |
| High Value | Aneesh Chopra MPP | Chair, Arcadia Institute | Arcadia | Former US CTO. Health data policy. |
| Worth It | Dr. Erin Palm MD, MBA | CMO | Infinitus Systems | Automates payer-provider phone calls. Adjacent AI company. |
| Worth It | Israel Krush | CEO & Co-Founder | Hyro | Conversational AI for healthcare. Peer company. |
Nursing & Clinical Informatics (Your End Users)
| Priority | Name | Title | Company | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Must Meet | Katie Barr RN, MSN | SVP, Chief Nursing Informatics Officer | Advocate Health | Chief Nursing Informatics Officer. Your product serves nurses. She validates your approach. |
| Must Meet | Dr. Katherine E. Taylor Pearson DNP | President | American Nursing Informatics Association | Runs the professional org for nursing informatics. Credibility + distribution. |
| Must Meet | Dr. Melinda S. Kidder DHA, MSN, RN | CNO, Asst Secretary for Tech Policy | HHS | Chief Nursing Officer of HHS. Nursing + tech policy intersection. |
| High Value | Dr. Bradley Goettl DNP, RN | Chief Nursing Officer | American Nurses Association | ANA CNO. Endorsement from ANA would be significant. |
| High Value | Dr. Margaret Lozovatsky MD | CMIO, VP Digital Health Innovations | American Medical Association | AMA's digital health innovation lead. |
CMS / Regulatory (Know the Rulemakers)
| Priority | Name | Title | Company | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Value | Abe Sutton | Director of CMMI and Deputy Administrator | CMS | CMMI shapes payment innovation models that drive UR requirements. |
| High Value | Amy Gleason | Administrator, U.S. DOGE Service | CMS | DOGE + CMS = major restructuring. Know what's coming. |
| High Value | Emily Chen | Senior Advisor, Office of the Administrator | CMS | Inner circle at CMS. |
| High Value | Dr. Thomas Keane MD, MBA | National Coordinator for Health IT | HHS | ONC head. Interoperability rules affect how UR data flows. |
| Worth It | Chris Jones | Former CMS Advisor | Catalyst Policy Group | Former CMS. Now consulting. Good intel source. |
| Worth It | Ryan Howells MHA | Principal | Leavitt Partners | Health policy consulting. Former HHS Secretary's firm. |
| Worth It | Randi Seigel JD | Partner | Manatt, Phelps & Phillips | Top health law firm. Regulatory intel. |
TIER 4: MEDIA & INFLUENCERS
Worth knowing. A mention from any of these amplifies your story.
| Name | Title | Outlet | Angle |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brock Turner | Health Tech Deals Reporter | Axios | Covers deals. Useful when you raise. |
| Paige Minemyer | Senior Writer, Fierce Health Payer | Questex | Covers payers specifically. Your target market's trade press. |
| Maia Anderson | Senior Reporter | Healthcare Brew / Morning Brew | Broad health tech audience. |
| Matthew Holt | Founder/Author | The Health Care Blog | OG health tech blogger. Influential. |
| Dan Gorenstein | Founder and Executive Editor | Tradeoffs Podcast | Health policy podcast. |
| Grace Vinton | PR Pro, Podcast Host | HITea with Grace | Health IT community influencer. |
| Rachel (Rae) Woods | VP, National Spokesperson | Advisory Board | Advisory Board has massive health system/payer audience. |
TIER 5: NOTABLE HEALTH SYSTEM LEADERS
Not primary buyers but could become FDE clients or referral sources.
| Name | Title | Company | Why Notable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dr. Peter Slavin MD | CEO | Cedars-Sinai | Host city health system CEO |
| Dr. Ashley Beecy MD | Chief AI Officer | Sutter Health | Health system AI leader in CA |
| Mouneer Odeh | Chief Data & AI Officer | Cedars-Sinai | AI leader at host city system |
| Dr. Rohit Chandra PhD | Chief Digital Officer | Cleveland Clinic | Top system CDO |
| Nasim Eftekhari | Chief AI and Analytics Officer | City of Hope | Cancer center AI lead |
| Jonathan Slotkin MD | CMO, Strategy and Growth | Geisinger | Innovation-forward system |
| Dr. Sarah Pletcher MD | Chief Digital Health Officer | Houston Methodist | Digital health leader |
| Maneesh Goyal | COO, Mayo Clinic Platform | Mayo Clinic | Mayo's tech commercialization arm |
| Dr. Niraj Sehgal MD | EVP & Chief Physician Executive | Stanford Health Care | Stanford system leader |
TOP 10 MUST-MEET LIST (Walk-Around Priority)
If you only get to talk to 10 people at the entire conference, make it these:
| # | Name | Company | 30-Second Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dr. Ali Khan | Aetna (CMO, Medicare) | Owns medical necessity decisions at a top-3 payer. Perfect buyer. |
| 2 | Dr. Kay Judge | Blue Shield of CA (CMO, Medicare) | Same as above, CA-based. Regional alignment. |
| 3 | Julie Durham | UnitedHealth Group (CDO) | Largest payer. Controls AI/digital strategy. |
| 4 | Ashok Chennuru | Elevance Health (Chief Data/AI Officer) | Anthem's AI transformation leader. |
| 5 | Irem Rami | Norwest (Partner) | Already in your investor pipeline. Convert warm to hot. |
| 6 | Julie Yoo | a16z (GP) | Best possible investor brand for healthcare AI. |
| 7 | Nancy Brown | Oak HC/FT (GP) | Healthcare-focused fund, right stage. |
| 8 | Syed Mohiuddin | Anthropic (Head of Healthcare) | You build on their model. Strategic relationship. |
| 9 | Katie Barr | Advocate Health (Chief Nursing Informatics Officer) | Validates your product thesis. Advisor potential. |
| 10 | Dr. Brian Anderson | CHAI (CEO) | AI governance authority. Credibility by association. |
APPROACH NOTES
For Payer Execs: Lead with the pain. "We help UR nurses make faster, more accurate medical necessity determinations using AI-driven criteria matching. We're working with [Premera if closed] on this." Don't pitch the tech - pitch the outcome (faster reviews, fewer appeals, nurse satisfaction).
For Investors: Lead with traction. Premera deal, health plan pipeline, FDE model. The ViVE context gives you "we're embedded in the ecosystem" credibility. If Norwest's Irem Rami is there, this is your chance to move from Zoom to real relationship.
For Advisors/AI peers: Be genuine. "We're building AI for utilization review. Would love your perspective on [specific question]." Healthcare AI founders are generally generous at conferences.
For CMS/Regulatory: Listen more than you talk. Ask what they're seeing in AI regulation, prior auth reform, interoperability. The intel is the value.
For Media: Only engage if you have news (Premera closed, funding). Otherwise, just introduce yourself and plant the seed for later.
COMPANIES TO VISIT ON SHOW FLOOR
Beyond speakers, look for these companies' booths (competitors, partners, customers):
| Company | Why Visit |
|---|---|
| Cohere Health | Direct competitor in AI prior auth. See their demo. |
| Abridge | AI clinical documentation peer. |
| Ambience Healthcare | AI ambient scribe. Compare approaches. |
| Innovaccer | Health data platform. Potential integration partner. |
| Particle Health | Health data exchange. Infrastructure layer you might need. |
| Hippocratic AI | Healthcare AI peer. |
| Infinitus Systems | Automates payer calls. Adjacent. |
| Candid Health | Revenue cycle AI. Adjacent. |
| MEDITECH | Major EHR. Their customers are your users' employers. |
| athenahealth | Major EHR. Same logic. |
Last updated: 2026-02-20 | ~243 speakers analyzed from ViVE 2026 main program