otomo
Real-time Speech AI for Surgery Revenue Cycle Management
Idea in Health Care
Introduction
Otomo is a digital health startup from MIT, harnessing real-time voice AI and machine learning algorithms to improve revenue cycle management efficiency and automate administrative tasks, initially focusing on gastrointestinal endoscopies. Over time, Otomo aims to build a leading voice repository that unlocks new healthcare insights and expands patient access to high-quality care.
Over the summer, we participated in MIT’s delta v accelerator, securing seven LOIs from major academic hospitals nationwide. Currently, we are prioritizing three local institutions—Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Mount Auburn Hospital, and Tufts Medical Center—for initial feasibility studies. In addition, we were accepted into Intersystems’ startup collaboration program, supporting EMR integration and laying the groundwork for broader sales partnerships. We have also received several angel investments.
Problem
Due to a shortage of healthcare providers, endoscopy patients in the U.S. often wait over two months for appointments, yet about 10% of these end up as no-shows or last-minute cancellations. This inefficiency leads to operating room underutilization and delays, costing unearned revenue of at least $1.3 billion annually for US healthcare.
Communication challenges—such as lack of pre-procedure education, inadequate follow-ups, and language barriers—contribute significantly to these missed appointments. With limited staff to provide personalized guidance, leveraging technologies like voice-based AI is becoming urgent.
Opportunity
Unlike competitors offering only partial solutions, Otomo manages the entire patient journey end-to-end. Our real-time voice and text AI agents actively engage patients throughout their endoscopic procedures—providing timely reminders, reinforcing health literacy, and addressing medical queries with physician-approved materials. With full visibility into each patient’s preparation progress, Otomo also leverages predictive algorithms to seamlessly handle no-shows and rescheduling, ensuring optimal operating room utilization.
This integrated approach cuts no-shows by over 60%, achieves more than 97% OR capacity, and boosts annual revenue by approximately $450,000 per practice—all while reducing administrative burdens.