1/ VizAI's new NTAP payment shows that medical device & AI can pair for a great business model:

1. MedTech can help AI companies gain reimbursement through existing pathways.
2. AI companies can help MedTech companies drive pull-through revenue.

Why you will see more of this

2/ Great MedTech cos know how to get innovation payments for new techs like drug-eluting stents

NTAP is a CMS pathway for breakthrough tech used in *inpatient* setting. To qualify, your tech must be new, costly (above DRG rate), and demonstrate a substantial clinical improvement

3/ Medtronic likely helped VizAI through this process.

It's the bread and butter of their health economics & reimbursement team; a good HE&R team knows how to navigate all these pathways. They get new CPTs, NTAPs, Coverage with Evidence Development, etc https://www.bloomberg.com/press-releases/2019-07-22/medtronic-plc-medtronic-partners-with-viz-ai-to-accelerate-adoption-of-new-artificial-intelligence-software-in-u-s-stroke-cen

4/ What's Medtronic see in VizAI? Pull through revenue.

A huge barrier to medtech revenue is patient journey: getting the *right* patient to *your* device at the *right* time.

Traditionally, this is a very difficult nut to crack because reorging hospital pathways is expensive.

5/ In addition to helping patients, VizAI helps get patients to a Medtronic interventionist, while also generating revenue.

It's a win-win.

Expect to see more of these partnerships moving forward: AI that changes patient journey to improve outcomes & drive pullthrough revenue.