Kaia Health Appoints Industry Veterans as CTO and CPO to Solidify Digital Therapeutics Leadership Position
Further Investment in Technology Innovation to Accelerate User Reach and Impact, At Scale
NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#MSK—Kaia Health, the largest global digital therapeutics company on a mission to make high-quality, evidence-based therapies accessible to anyone, anytime, today announced the appointment of Chris Lichti as chief technology officer (CTO) and Simon Hayhurst as chief product officer (CPO). The new talent investments align with the company’s larger strategy for solidifying the company’s technology infrastructure and product roadmap for the coming year.
As the company’s new CTO, Chris Lichti will lead research, development, security, compliance, and technical operations. He brings to the position a passion for mission-focused hyper-growth to power successful outcomes as well as decades of information technology experience. This includes a research background exploring machine learning and artificial intelligence for Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), natural language processing, biomedical informatics, and mission-critical systems for command and control. Prior to joining Kaia Health, he served as both the CEO and CTO at Properoots, CTO at Autolist, the CTO at Dictionary.com, and VP Engineering at TrueCar. He holds a BS in computer science from California Lutheran University and an executive MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business.
As CPO, Simon Hayhurst will spearhead product strategy and execution, product design, and content. He brings to the role a passion for the ways technology can transform the human experience and expertise across diverse industries, from start-ups to large-scale organizations. Joining from Ceres Imaging, where Simon served as CPO, his previous roles include head of product for high-growth companies including RocketFuel and Yume and product leadership roles at Facebook, Adobe, SGI, and Autonomy. Simon has also served as advisor to numerous start-ups. He holds a master’s degree and a bachelor’s degree in engineering from Cambridge University and an MBA from Wharton.
“We are thrilled to welcome both Chris and Simon to the Kaia Health senior management team,” said Nigel Ohrenstein, president of Kaia Health. “As a pioneer in the burgeoning digital therapeutics space, our impact is often measured by the exceptional quality of our technology, which is the backbone of our clinical success in treating MSK and COPD conditions. This is why investing in top talent with extensive industry experience will always be a top priority for our organization.”
The senior level technology appointments come on the heels of a series of other momentous achievements for the healthcare organization. The company kicked off 2022 with 50+ new customers and was followed by news of a strategic partnership with UnitedHealthcare to launch a new virtual physical therapy program for its self-funded employer health plans. More recently, Kaia Health announced that building off the success of its digital MSK offering, the team has launched a clinically validated virtual offering for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) rehabilitation.
Kaia Health is the most clinically validated digital MSK solution and the easiest to use on the market, creating an accessible and equitable healthcare experience for everyone. Kaia’s proprietary motion analysis technology, which has been clinically validated to show its effectiveness and safety in providing real-time corrective feedback, eliminates the need for sensors or physical devices and can be used by anyone with a smartphone. Today, Kaia Health is partnering with leading U.S. employers, health plans, and providers, including MetLife, UnitedHealthcare, and VirginPulse, to improve access to high-quality, affordable care.
About Kaia Health
Kaia Health is the world’s largest digital therapeutics company that creates accessible, evidence-based treatments for a range of conditions, including MSK pain and COPD. Kaia Health covers 60 million lives globally, and its clinically proven motion analysis capability is transforming and democratizing healthcare through technology that patients can access anytime, anywhere, with the camera of their smartphone or tablet. Kaia Health is the most clinically validated digital MSK provider, and its motion analysis technology is as accurate as physical therapists in suggesting exercise corrections, resulting in equitable care regardless of BMI, age, gender, or location. Kaia Health is a member of the Digital Therapeutics Alliance (DTA) and has offices in New York and Munich. Learn more at www.kaiahealth.com.
Contacts
Olga Eskinazi
olga.eskinazi@kaiahealth.com
(617) 500-7954