SAMI Health

High-Level Overview

Sami Saúde (often referred to as Sami Health) is a Brazil-based digital-first health insurance company founded in 2018 that delivers affordable, tech-enabled healthcare through telemedicine, AI automation, and value-based care models.[1][4][5] It serves small- and medium-sized businesses, independent gig workers, and individuals by providing comprehensive health plans featuring family physicians, care teams, free gym memberships with activity tracking, and seamless digital tools like video consults and mental health apps, solving Brazil's challenges of expensive, inaccessible healthcare amid a complex system.[1][2][4] With 55% of clinical events handled digitally, Sami reduces costs, boosts engagement, and tracks over 1,000 gym sessions weekly while employing its own physicians and partnering with hospitals.[1][5] Recent momentum includes a USD 10M funding round for 2025 expansion and AI integrations saving over 900 hours monthly in care coordination.[2][8]

Origin Story

Sami was co-founded in 2018 in São Paulo by Vitor Asseituno, MD, and Luiz Guilherme Berardo (CEO), who combined medical expertise with entrepreneurial experience in healthcare scaling.[1][2][4][5] Berardo's prior ventures highlighted the need for innovation in Brazil's cumbersome insurance model, leading them to launch a digital-first insurer leveraging telemedicine, big data, and preventive tools to make care accessible to underserved groups like gig workers.[1][2] Early traction came from direct sales to SMBs, in-network hospital partnerships, and a primary care center, establishing a virtuous cycle of lower costs and higher trust; pivotal AI adoption with Google Cloud further accelerated efficiency in patient journeys.[1][3][5]

Core Differentiators

• Digital-First Infrastructure: 55% of care via telemedicine, apps, and secure text; employs own physicians and uses fitness data for free gym memberships, pioneering value-based incentives tied to activity over procedure volume.[1][4]
• AI-Driven Automation: Tools like Google Cloud's Vertex AI, Gemini, and chat summarization cut tasks from hours to minutes (e.g., prescription validation in seconds), saving 900+ hours monthly and enabling holistic member health views.[2][3][5]
• Direct-to-Consumer Model: Bypasses brokers to target SMBs and gig economy workers; interoperability across providers for seamless data exchange and personalized journeys.[1][4]
• Preventive and Value-Based Care: Family physician model, real-time KPI agents, and partnerships reduce administrative burdens while improving outcomes and medical loss ratios.[1][2][4]

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Sami rides the wave of AI-native digital health in emerging markets, where Brazil's bureaucratic system and gig economy create demand for affordable, scalable insurance amid rising preventive care trends.[1][2][5] Timing aligns with generative AI maturity (e.g., Google Cloud integrations post-2023), enabling orchestration of fragmented care paths—transcribing interactions, standardizing data for doctors, and integrating labs/hospitals—which traditional insurers can't match at scale.[3][5] Market forces like cost pressures and telehealth adoption favor Sami's model, influencing Brazil's ecosystem by proving tech can cut costs competitively while expanding access, potentially setting standards for value-based care in Latin America.[1][8]

Quick Take & Future Outlook

Sami is poised for aggressive 2025 growth post-USD 10M raise, deepening AI for end-to-end automation and physical-digital health integration to serve millions more in Brazil's gig-heavy market.[3][5][8] Trends like gen AI expansion and preventive data exchanges will amplify efficiencies, evolving Sami from digital-first to fully AI-native, potentially disrupting legacy insurers regionally. This builds on its core mission, transforming inaccessible care into an equitable paradigm for all Brazilians.[2][5]