Published in Nashville Business Journal
The Nashville team who created an artificial intelligence program that predicts health care staffing needs has sold that business to a national company.
San Diego-based Aya Healthcare now owns Polaris AI Inc., which spun out of Nashville’s SwitchPoint Ventures in 2020 and is based in Green Hills.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, though the sale speaks to the kind of artificial intelligence and machine-learning bubbling up within the region’s business community. Aya Healthcare bills itself as the nation’s largest travel nursing agency. The company has 16% market share and more than $11 billion of annual staffing revenue, according to research and advisory firm Staffing Industry Analysts.
Polaris AI says its platform can predict future patient volumes down to the hour, helping hospitals pinpoint the correct staffing levels, even in volatile settings such as operating rooms or emergency departments, according to the company.
“With Aya’s resources and reach, we’re excited to further operationalize these predictions at scale for health systems across the United States,” said Mark Dose, chief operating officer of Polaris AI, in a press release.
SwitchPoint, led by founding CEO Ray Guzman, partnered with Nashville anesthesiology company PhyMed Healthcare. In 2021, Nashville-based Harpeth Ventures Oppurtunity Fund made an equity investment in Polaris AI.
