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UK HealthTech innovator Ufonia has gained a significant foothold in the world’s largest and most dynamic healthcare market, thanks to support from the ABHI US Accelerator. Hear from CEO Nick de Pennington on how targeted engagement and early collaboration have helped Ufonia achieve impressive progress.  

For many UK HealthTech innovators, the United States promises major opportunities for scale, innovation, and commercial growth. However, it remains one of the world’s most complex health systems. 

For Ufonia, a UK-based clinical AI company, entering the US was a strategic priority. With ABHI US Accelerator support, the HealthTech company has launched two Institutional Review Board (IRB) approved clinical trials, secured academic partnerships with Dell Medical School and begun its US commercial launch. 

The Challenge 

Ufonia provides a clinical AI agent that automates routine clinical visits, helping healthcare providers manage demand. From the outset, Nick identified the US as an attractive market. 

“If you want to grow a large healthcare company, you need to work where there is a large volume of activity,” he said. “The US is also willing to adopt new ways of delivering care.” 

However, the path to adoption in the US differs from that in the UK. Unlike the centralised NHS, American healthcare is fragmented, geographically diverse, and formed by varied reimbursement models. For a growing company, selecting the wrong entry point can waste time and resources with minimal return. 

“Trying to decide where to land is crucial. Unless you're a really big company, you have to be targeted.” 

Accelerator Support 

Ufonia turned to the Accelerator to support its market entry strategy.   

“The aim was to really listen to what US healthcare providers, physicians, and executives really cared about and to understand how the system was set up. We could then appreciate where we fit into that mix.” 

During their time on the programme, Ufonia conducted structured visits across several states, working directly with health systems, clinicians, academic institutions, and decision-makers. 

“The Accelerator was crucial. It was the start of our journey. Being able to have intensive visits across multiple states and to build connections directly with a range of people within those organisations was key for gaining that understanding.” 

Working with Dell Medical School 

One of the earliest introductions, Dell Medical School, proved transformative. An established partner of the Accelerator programme, Dell’s openness to new care delivery models aligned strongly with Ufonia’s focused go-to-market strategy in ophthalmology. 

“Dell was the first visit of the Accelerator programme, and now they are an anchor partner. It has a young and fresh ophthalmology department willing to look at new ways of delivering care, and that's exactly what we're all about.” 

Building on that relationship, Ufonia has recently launched two IRB-approved clinical trials in Texas: one with Dell and a second at Baylor College of Medicine. 

“Clinical trials and working with academic medical centres are a foundation for us,” said Nick, a clinician leading a team of clinicians. “If we’re asking people to deliver care differently using technology, we need to build trust with clinicians. And the way to build trust is to develop evidence.