Siam Computing, founded and led by Khuze Siam, is using AI-driven technology to ease and enrich the lives of the four Ps in healthcare – patients, providers, pharma companies and payers. Siam Computing’s responsiveness to market changes and its ability to build capacity is impressive, given that Khuze had a humble beginning churning out e-commerce websites all by himself. Over the years he’s progressed to creating specialised products for startups by combining behavioural science and business strategy, and now it’s time to pivot again! They’re in the process of transitioning and delivering enterprise solutions for healthcare stakeholders.
We had a chat with him to understand the events and challenges that impacted his entrepreneurial journey.
Negotiating Technology Shifts
“I’ve been lucky to see different shifts of technology over a period of time. As a fresher with the Bank of New York I was part of a very hands-on, star-packed team of developers that worked to migrate from their legacy mainframe to cloud technology in just a year! The project was a great success. The global CEO flew down for the launch and announced that the team would now be expanded to 150 members. Of the 18 freshers, seven of us quit as we knew we wouldn’t have much to do as a part of a larger team. We’d already tasted blood and couldn’t settle for anything less!” chuckles Khuze.
The Aha! Moment
Though Khuze wanted to study business, his mom packed him off to work at his uncle’s enterprise in Cochin. “His business dealt with ships and shipyards. I gained experience for a year working with customers across the board – corporate, government, and so on. But it was not as fulfilling as tech for me. So I moved out and started developing e-commerce sites until one of my clients triggered a lightbulb moment. She said,’ Stop working for your business and start working on your business.’”
The First Fall
In 2014 Khuze hired his first employee and began building a team. “Learnt the hard way to let go and delegate!” he laughs. From 2015 to 2018 he built their first product, Hisabing, an invoicing and quotation managing software for shops like those in Parrys corner that still use paper and pencil. “I hustled to sell the product negotiating objections like ‘There’s no internet to use this product’ and ‘You’ll look at our prices and snitch to your dad’ (who was also in the hardware business). It was a complete disarray. What I thought was cool tech-wise was not what the users needed. This realisation helped me move from being a developer to a product founder!” explains Khuze on his initial journey.
Discovering a Niche
Having identified this disconnect between the product and users, Khuze did a bit more research. “There are gaps between what a founder thinks the problem is, what a developer understands and what the user actually wants. And we found that we weren’t the only ones facing this issue. So we decided to go back to providing services. We spent time understanding the problem we were trying to solve, did user-research and communicated it to the devs so they knew what was needed. Given our approach, our customers were mostly startups trying to find their feet and many from the healthcare segment which has a complex quagmire nature to it,” he explains. This worked very well for Siam Computing and they gained clientele and grew. “But in 2022 – 2023 funding winter hit and companies shut down. Though we enjoyed working with startups we realised it’s a volatile industry. So we started focusing on the more stable enterprises in the healthcare space.”
Products for the 4 Ps
While there are tech companies that cater to Patients, Providers (Hospitals and healthcare providers), Pharma and Payers (Insurance companies etc), there are not many that cover the entire gamut. Siam Computing has positioned itself as a firm with solutions for each of these segments.
Patients
They have gamified healthcare outcomes especially for chronic conditions like diabetes, blood pressure, weight loss etc. This is useful for Patients to manage their health better.
Pharma
For Pharma companies, they develop Continuous Medical Education programs that keep medical professionals informed about new treatments, drug interactions, and advancements in their field.
Payers (Insurance Companies)
Insurance companies use their solution to keep their customers better informed about policies and updates.
Providers (Hospitals & Clinics)
For hospitals and other providers of healthcare they offer two game changing products – Patient Experience Platform and the Digital ICU Solution. “In India, delivering healthcare in interior and remote areas is a challenge as there are not many intensivists willing to move from the cities. Through our Digital ICU solution, we use IOT to read data from monitors and reach them to remote medical specialists. They can read the data and diagnose from wherever they are. This is a win-win for patients and doctors!” says Khuze.
No Stranger to AI
While their offerings are all AI-based, the extent to which this new technology is used is determined by the complexity of the solution. Siam is not new to AI or even its precursor, machine learning. “During COVID when there was a demand for oxygen cylinders we helped with distributing them equitably to different hospitals, cities and states based on available data. The distribution plan used parameters like ‘whether they had other sources, their requirement, location and so on. And this was published live so people could see where the cylinders were being routed,” confides Khuze.
Healthcare Trends
“Healthcare is now coming to you, whether it’s through e-pharmacy or home diagnostics. We want to be able to help large hospitals provide continuum of care using AI. For example, they can manage appointments using our Healthbot 360. This is a Whatsapp based product that provides a centralised platform for clinic administrators to manage appointments, interactions and patient data. No show is a huge problem for healthcare providers. Clinics in the US end up losing about 3 million dollars a year because of no-shows. Healthbot 360 can reduce that. We are keen to build a niche in specific clinics be it dental, physiotherapy or derma through this product. “In India, our focus is on building physical infrastructure. There are not enough hospital beds for our teeming population. And this inadequacy can be addressed by building digital infrastructure by providing a continuum outside the hospital.
Advice to Fresh Entrepreneurs
“There are two things we need to keep in mind. Firstly, you can’t be everything to everyone. The riches are in the niches. So focus on one thing and work your way from there. Secondly, be very clear Why you are doing what you’re doing. Great founders have a very, very focused Why. If it takes 2 years or even 5 years to get to your Why, spend that time before starting off. It is the engine that will take you through tough times and long term challenges. When you get there you’ll have a certain high that you’ve built something purposeful!” is Khuze’s parting message.
