StuffThatWorks

StuffThatWorks operates a health data platform, converting patient experiences into structured, longitudinal data via smart crowdsourcing and artificial intelligence. It aggregates over 1.3 billion data points from millions of patients across 1,250 conditions. This extensive dataset fuels a patient-derived AI model, designed to accelerate clinical trials, improve protocol design, and generate critical medical insights for various healthcare stakeholders.

Founded by Yael Elish, a Waze founding team member, StuffThatWorks emerged from her recognition that insufficient patient-level health data hindered medical understanding. Inspired by Waze's crowdsourcing model, Elish empowered patients to collectively generate the essential data for continuous healthcare learning and improved outcomes. The company was built to facilitate global, structured, and consistent collection of real-world health data.

StuffThatWorks serves patients, providers, researchers, and pharmaceutical companies. Its vision is to cultivate the world's largest patient-derived data network, creating a self-reinforcing learning system. Fueled by growing patient participation, this system aims to accelerate effective treatment development and delivery, ultimately benefiting all healthcare stakeholders by providing deep, real-time insights into disease progression and treatment efficacy.

High-Level Overview

StuffThatWorks is a healthcare technology company that builds a crowdsourced platform leveraging machine learning and AI to create a knowledge database of patient-reported outcomes for chronic condition treatments.[1][2][3][5] It serves individuals with chronic illnesses by providing personalized insights into treatment efficacy, helping users identify what works best based on real-world data from peers, with the platform improving as more patients contribute structured experiences.[1][3][5] The company solves the problem of fragmented, anecdotal health information by organizing patient stories into analyzable data, enabling AI-driven discoveries like new uses for existing drugs in underserved populations.[1]

Founded in 2018 and headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel, StuffThatWorks has raised $25 million in Series A funding, employs 11-50 people, and carries an enterprise value of $100-150 million, reflecting strong growth momentum including revenue increases of 136% in 2020 and 100% in 2021.[2][4]

Origin Story

StuffThatWorks was founded in 2018 by Yael (full name not specified in sources), emerging from a focus on addressing gaps in chronic disease management through patient-generated data.[1][4] The idea stemmed from recognizing that patients' real-world experiences with treatments were underutilized, leading to the creation of a platform that structures this information consistently across conditions for AI analysis.[1][5] Early traction came from building a scalable data foundation, with investors like Bessemer Venture Partners backing a $25 million Series A round, signaling validation of its crowdsourcing model.[2][3] Key moments include rapid revenue growth post-launch and expansion to cover multiple chronic conditions, positioning it as a leader in patient-reported outcomes.[2]

Core Differentiators

• AI and Machine Learning Integration: Uses advanced algorithms to analyze crowdsourced patient data, uncovering personalized treatment insights and novel drug applications not evident in traditional trials.[1][2][5]
• Consistent Data Collection: Gathers structured information uniformly across all conditions, enabling cross-comparable analysis and scalability as the contributor base grows.[1]
• Patient-Centric Platform: Empowers users to transform personal experiences into a collective knowledge database, offering more accurate, peer-validated recommendations than generic advice.[3][5]
• Growth and Scale: Backed by significant funding ($25M Series A), with 11-50 employees and high revenue growth (e.g., 136% in 2020), differentiating it from competitors like PatientsLikeMe or CareClinic through focused chronic condition depth.[1][2]

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

StuffThatWorks rides the wave of real-world evidence (RWE) in healthcare, where patient-reported outcomes complement clinical trials amid rising chronic disease prevalence and demand for personalized medicine.[1][5] Its timing aligns with AI advancements in health data analysis and post-pandemic emphasis on digital health tools, amplified by market forces like regulatory pushes for RWE (e.g., FDA guidelines) and investor interest in healthtech unicorns.[2][3] By influencing the ecosystem, it provides pharma and researchers with actionable insights, potentially accelerating drug repurposing and reducing development costs, while fostering a community-driven shift from clinician-led to patient-empowered care.[1]

Quick Take & Future Outlook

StuffThatWorks is poised for expansion through deeper AI enhancements and partnerships with pharma giants seeking RWE datasets, potentially scaling to global coverage of more conditions.[1][2] Trends like generative AI for health predictions and decentralized clinical trials will shape its trajectory, boosting data volume and monetization via B2B licensing.[5] Its influence may evolve from a patient tool to an industry-standard database, solidifying its role in transforming chronic care—much like how it started by turning scattered stories into structured, lifesaving knowledge.[3]