Acclinate is a technology company.
Acclinate is a technology company.
Acclinate has raised $1.1M across 2 funding rounds.
Acclinate has raised $1.1M in total across 2 funding rounds.
# High-Level Overview
Acclinate is a digital health equity company that combines artificial intelligence with community engagement to increase diverse representation in clinical trials.[1][3] The company helps pharmaceutical companies and healthcare organizations reach and engage communities of color—populations historically underrepresented in medical research—through its dual-platform approach: the NOWINCLUDED community platform and the e-DICT technology platform.[2][4]
The core problem Acclinate solves is systemic: clinical trials have long excluded or marginalized Black Americans and other communities of color, resulting in medical research that doesn't reflect the populations it aims to serve.[1] This creates a vicious cycle where treatments may not work equally well for everyone. Acclinate's solution flips the traditional recruitment model—rather than treating clinical trial participation as a transactional exchange, the company builds trust-based relationships with communities, educates them about health issues, and then connects them to relevant research opportunities.[6] The company has demonstrated strong growth momentum, earning a spot on the Inc. 5000 list of America's fastest-growing private companies in 2025.[2]
# Origin Story
Acclinate was founded by Del Smith (Co-Founder and CEO) and Tiffany Whitlow (Co-Founder and Chief Development Officer), who recognized that the life sciences community needed a fundamentally different approach to clinical trial diversity.[2][7] The company emerged from a recognition that traditional recruitment firms simply "find bodies for trials," whereas Acclinate's mission is to build affective trust and lasting relationships with hard-to-reach communities of color.[6]
Early traction came through strategic partnerships and institutional support. By the end of 2022, Acclinate had partnered with Trialbee, a clinical trial management platform, to combine Acclinate's trust framework with Trialbee's operational capabilities.[7] The company also became a resident company at Johnson & Johnson Innovation's JLABS @ Washington, DC, which provided mentorship, infrastructure, and access to the investor community—a pivotal moment that positioned Acclinate closer to decision-making in the clinical trial ecosystem.[7] This support network, combined with customer belief in the product, has fueled the company's growth trajectory.[2]
# Core Differentiators
# Role in the Broader Tech Landscape
Acclinate sits at the intersection of three powerful trends: health equity, AI for social good, and community-centered technology design. The timing is critical—regulatory bodies and pharmaceutical companies are increasingly recognizing that clinical trial diversity isn't optional; it's essential for drug efficacy and safety across populations.[7] The FDA and industry stakeholders have begun prioritizing inclusive research, creating tailwinds for companies that can solve this problem at scale.
The company also represents a broader shift in how AI is being deployed in healthcare: moving away from black-box algorithms toward human-centered AI that augments rather than replaces community expertise.[1] This philosophy—that technology should serve communities rather than extract from them—is gaining traction in health tech and social impact sectors.
Acclinate's influence extends beyond its direct customers. By demonstrating that community-powered engagement can reshape clinical research outcomes, the company is influencing how the entire life sciences ecosystem thinks about diversity and representation.[2] Its partnerships with major players like Google and Johnson & Johnson signal that health equity is becoming a strategic priority, not a compliance checkbox.
# Quick Take & Future Outlook
Acclinate is positioned at a rare inflection point: a massive, underserved market (clinical trial diversity) combined with proven product-market fit (Inc. 5000 recognition, growing customer base) and institutional backing (Google, J&J). The company's challenge ahead is scaling without losing the trust-based community relationships that are its core differentiator.
The future likely involves geographic and therapeutic expansion—moving beyond early partnerships to become the standard platform for inclusive clinical trial recruitment across the industry. As regulatory pressure for diversity intensifies and AI governance becomes more stringent, companies like Acclinate that have built bias mitigation into their DNA from the start will have a structural advantage.
The deeper story: Acclinate is proving that technology companies can be profitable *and* mission-driven, that AI can be a tool for equity rather than inequality, and that communities of color aren't problems to be solved but partners to be trusted. That's a narrative the broader tech ecosystem is increasingly ready to embrace.
Acclinate has raised $1.1M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Acclinate's investors include 5 Star Capital, Avalanche VC, LAUNCH, MB40, Overline VC, SeedInvest, Collab Capital, Comal Ventures, Core Innnovation Capital, MetaProp Ventures.
Acclinate has raised $1.1M across 2 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $1.0M Seed in March 2021.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 1, 2021 | $1.0M Seed | 5 Star Capital, Avalanche VC, LAUNCH, MB40, Overline VC, SeedInvest | |
| Jan 1, 2021 | $120K Seed | Collab Capital, Comal Ventures, Core Innnovation Capital, MetaProp Ventures |