Aging-in-placeenablerHomethrivehasraisedanadditional$20millioninSeriesBfunding. ForHomethrive,thefundinground–ledbyHumanCapital,withparticipationfromAllianz,7wireVenturesandPitangoHealthTech–willgotowardits“aggressiveexpansion”plansandfurthertechnologyinvestments.Andforsimilarsenior-focusedstartups,theinfusionofcapitalshowsthatVCinterestinthespacehasfarfromcooled,despitearecentinvestmentslowdown. “Thisfundingwillhelpusbuildupoursalesandmarketingcapabilities,expandthemtobeabletoreachmorepeopleandevangelizeforthiskindoffamily-caregiversupport,”DaveJacobs,co-founderandco-CEOofHomethrive,toldHomeHealthCareNews.“AnditwillalsohelppeopleunderstandhowHomethrive’ssolutionreallyuniquelymeetsthatneed.” Jacobsandhisbusinesspartner,DavidGreenberg,launchedtheNorthbrook,Illinois-basedHomethrivein2018,aftereachhadgonethroughfamily-caregivingchallengeswithparents. BeforecreatingHomethrive,Jacobsspent15yearsasaseniorexecutiveatMedlineIndustries,a$12billionhealthcareproductscompany.GreenbergalsoservedasaseniorMedlineexec,taskedwithleadingtheorganization’sstrategicpriorities. Yetevenwiththeirhealthcarebackgrounds,thepairoftenfeltlosttryingtofindandcoordinateservicesfortheirparents,Jacobsrecalled. “Despitethefactthatwewerehealthcareexecutiveswithalotofknowledgeoftheindustry,andwerefortunatetohaveclosefamiliesandthemeanstosupportourfamilies,thecaregivingjourneywasincrediblychallenging,”hesaid.“Itwasdifficult.” Toalleviatethosepressuresforothers,JacobsandGreenbergsoughtouttobuildabusinessthat,inverysimpleterms,actsasadigitalseniorcareroadmap. “Aswelookatbuildingbusinessesthatinformandconnectthehealthconsumer,thekeyingredientisn’tjusttheideabehindthebusiness,”GlenTullman,co-founderof7wireVenturesandtheCEOofTranscarent,saidinastatement.“Thekeyingredientisthepeopletomaketheideaarealityatscale.” Somebodywhoseparentwasdiagnosedwithdementia,forexample,coulddownloadHomethrive’ssmartdigitalassistant,Dari,whichwouldthenofferbackgroundonthediseaseandaccesstosocialworkers.Inthatscenario,Homethrivecouldadditionallyhelpfamilycaregiversfindprofessionalservicesintheirmarket,includinghomehealthandhomecareagencies. “Oneofthemostcommonthings[wedo]iswehelppeopleunderstandthedifferencesbetween‘skilled’and‘non-skilled’homecare,helpingthemaccessthat,”Jacobssaid.“That’soneofthemostcommonthingspeoplecometousfor,intermsofservices.Weareverymuchapartnerforhomecare[agencies]acrossthecountry.” Asforhowservicesarepaidfor,Homethriveisofferedasabenefitbyself-insuredemployersandMedicareAdvantage(MA)plans,plusMedicaresupplementandlong-termcareinsurance.HomethriveiscurrentlyavailableacrosstheU.S. SomeoftheorganizationsofferingHomethriveasabenefitincludetheMichiganManufacturersAssociation,lawfirmMcDermottWill&Emeryandhealth-techstartupemids.PrivatewealthmanagementfirmRockefellerCapitalManagementisanotherenterpriseclient. “AservicelikeHomethriveisanintangiblethat’sinherentlyvaluable,”FrankDue,seniorvicepresidentandheadofhumancapitalatRockefeller,saidinastatement.“It’sawhite-gloveservicenavigatinganimportantandmeaningfulspacethatwe’renotaccustomedto.” Tullmanisalsochairman