Why is longevity suddenly so hot?

I’ve been fascinated to see the spiking consumer demand in companies like Function Health, Lifeforce, Superpower, and Peter Attia’s just announced Biograph—and my investor friends are paying attention. Function just raised at a $2.5 billion valuation, per Pitchbook News, off the back of some impressive momentum. Other players include Neko Health (which offers a body scan and health check); Parsley Health (one of the true OGs in functional medicine); and Ezra and Prenuvo (both offering whole body scans). Longevity has been around for a while, but it’s truly now undeniable in terms of its consumer reach and traction. As a result, many of the leading VC firms are tracking the category, anticipating several breakout successes.

These companies take different approaches, but what they have in common is that they’re each providing consumers with new information about their health for the purposes of both health span and health optimization. The idea is to monitor for early indications of disease through a combination of health tests, whether it be diabetes or hormone-related issues, as well as coaching and other forms of clinical support. The goal is to work with individuals to support their metabolic health, enhance performance, and refine their overall physiological function. With access to continuous health information alongside targeted interventions, consumers will get theoretically a better sense of what works. Many are seeking peak vitality—not just the absence of disease, which is where I’d argue this category is different than much of what we’ve seen before.

So in recent weeks, I’ve been asking questions like: What’s motivating consumers at this moment in time? What is the role of AI here? And what do the unit economics look like under the hood (how expensive is it to acquire patients, and how long are they retained)? And what kind of patients will be the early adopters?

For answers, I pulled aside my friend Sunita Mohanty, CEO of a company called Vibrant, which is building AI-based provider enablement tools for longevity and functional medicine-focused clinics, to get her thoughts. Mohanty, who has a product background, has also personally tried out many digital longevity clinics as a patient. As a female biohacker and entrepreneur in this space, she has a truly unique POV, and we ended up talking for hours at a dinner we convened in New York.

Plus a special invite: Scrub Capital, the clinician-powered investment firm where I’m a GP, is holding a dinner in Memphis, Tennessee hosted by prolific medical device inventor and investor Dr, Kevin Foley. Scrub Cofounders and GPs Dr. Rebecca Mitchell and Dr Jon Slotkin are also attending. Spots are limited but if you want to attend or you know someone who should, please email me at [email protected].

Our conversation below, for Second Opinion subscribers, edited for brevity.

Second Opinion: Why is longevity taking off so suddenly?

Become a paid member to read the rest...