REAL STORIES FROM HEALTHCARE INNOVATORS
Why AI in Healthcare Must Start With Strategy—Not Shiny Tools
Early Google engineer and Silicon Valley innovator Murali Vivekanandan, CEO of Ideas2IT, brings a rare blend of tech and healthcare expertise to the Sparxcast Unleashed podcast. In this conversation, he explains why AI’s impact on healthcare depends less on flashy pilots and more on building a strategic foundation—one that balances operational efficiency, clinical safety, and long-term competitiveness.
Vivekanandan shares how providers, payers, and service organizations can move beyond “vendor roadmaps” to own their AI destiny, with practical advice on building data backbones, applying human-in-the-loop safeguards, and proving ROI step by step. He also opens up about scaling a 750-person engineering firm with almost no turnover—by putting employee happiness ahead of everything else.
Redefining Pain Care: Why Access to Opioids Is a Healthcare Imperative
OPOS CEO and Founder Justin Kromelow shares an evidence-backed perspective on the opioid crisis—and the patients being left behind. With 25 million Americans relying on long-term opioid therapy to maintain independence and quality of life, Kromelow explains why blanket restrictions have created a second crisis: a collapse in access for those who need it most.
Justin walks through a smarter, safer model for opioid management—one that empowers providers with regulatory support, elevates patient function over pain scores, and restores profitability to practices while dramatically improving outcomes. He also opens up about OPOS’s rapid growth and his mission to rewrite the standard of care.
AI, Healthcare Innovation, and the Path to Better Outcomes with Dr. Mitch Morris
Dr. Mitch Morris has had a remarkable career—from cancer surgeon to CIO of MD Anderson, to leading Deloitte’s healthcare consulting practice, and now helping healthcare startups scale. In this episode, he shares sharp insights on AI’s growing role in healthcare, the challenges of navigating the industry, and what it takes for startups to succeed. From the promise and risks of AI to fixing healthcare’s broken incentives, this conversation is packed with real-world wisdom for innovators looking to make a difference.
