How do top investors decide where to put their millions? Hint: It’s not just about your pitch deck.

Raising capital isn’t just about vision—it’s about proving you have the team, traction, and exit potential to make your venture worth the risk. Thomas Rudy has reviewed over 1,500 startups a year, and in this episode, he reveals what separates the YESes from the NOs.

If you've ever felt unsure whether you’re “venture-backable,” this episode will help you reflect on the gaps holding you back—and give you the clarity to fill them with confidence.

You’ll walk away knowing exactly how to position your company for investor alignment—from defining scalability the VC way, to building a team that de-risks execution, to reverse engineering your exit potential.

Most startups VCs pass on aren’t bad—they just aren’t venture-scale. In this candid conversation, you’ll learn how to be brutally honest about where your startup stands and what to do next.

✔️ What VCs really mean when they say “you’re not scalable yet”

✔️ The critical difference between strategic board titles vs execution-ready teams

✔️ Why having “80% of funds go to tech” isn’t enough—and what to say instead

✔️ How to reverse engineer your exit using revenue, EBITDA, and industry multiples

✔️ Why some founders should skip VC entirely—and still win big

🎧 Related Episodes You’ll Love

Ep 130- Why Most HealthTech Solutions Fail: The Hidden Gap Between Innovation and Implementation – This episode digs into the common pitfalls that healthtech founders face (particularly in scaling and market fit).

Ep 154- Is Your Startup Built on Swiss Cheese? with George Pappas – A strong fit because it explores structural weaknesses in startups (teams, roles, funding) that align directly with what we unpacked with MyPhuong.

Ep 177- What Traction Signals Investors Say Yes To – Especially relevant for founders looking for their first backers, this episode zeroes in on what investors are actually looking for.

✅ Want to Keep Growing Without Losing Clients?

Here are 3 ways we can help you today:

🎤 Be a Featured Guest on the Provider’s Edge

Have traction and a story to share? Apply to join us on the show: PulsePointPath.com/Call-Sabrina

📊 Make Your Pitch Investor-Ready

Send us your draft and let me rewrite it so it becomes a funding magnet 👉 PitchToYes.com

🚀 Get in Front of Investors Who Already Want What You’ve Built

Apply for a contestant spot at PulsePointPath.com/Pitch-Application and pitch to active investors and decision-makers in your niche.

If you’re a femtech founder building in silence and still waiting for real traction—this episode is your wake-up call. The funding isn’t always the problem. It’s the missing ecosystem.

Dr. MyPhuong Le went from struggling in academic research to co-founding a manufacturing company and now leads a thriving innovation hub in San Diego. Together, we unpacked what early-stage founders really need beyond funding: role clarity, uncomfortable conversations, and teams that align in mission—not just skillsets.

You’ll hear how women founders in health tech are hitting investor roadblocks—not because of poor solutions, but because too many rooms still treat menstrual health and menopause like taboo topics. MyPhuong shares how breaking that silence can shift capital, culture, and credibility.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

🔶 Why building alone is one of the most dangerous things founders can do

🔶 What roles truly matter in your founding team (hint: it’s not just tech)

🔶 How femtech founders can win support—even when investors are uncomfortable

🔶 Why diverse voices in health tech are finally gaining traction, and how to be part of it

🔶 A 3-part co-founder framework to scale without burning out

Dr. MyPhuong Le will be hosting the Global Innovation in Women’s Health Pitch Showcase 2026, with Sabrina Runbeck serving as a judge—especially for founders heading to JPM 2026. This in-person event brings together innovators, investors, and leaders advancing women’s health.

📅 January 12, 2026 | 1:30–8:00 PM PST

📍 The Women’s Building, San Francisco, CA

🎟 Exclusive listener offer: Get 20% off registration

Use code WMNSHLTH20

Register here: https://eventship.com/event/01-12-26-global-innovation-in-women-s-health-pitch-showcase

Learn more about the agenda: https://www.aquillius.com/event/global-innovation-in-womens-health-pitch-showcase

✅ Want to Keep Growing Without Losing Clients?

Here are 3 ways we can help you today:

🎤 Be a Featured Guest on the Provider’s Edge

Have traction and a story to share? Apply to join us on the show: PulsePointPath.com/Call-Sabrina

📊 Make Your Pitch Investor-Ready

Send us your draft and let me rewrite it so it becomes a funding magnet 👉 PitchToYes.com

🏆 Win the Award and Showcase Your Impact

Nominate a spot at HealthTechImpactAward.com and win multiple media placements, investor introductions, and advisory support for your scalability.

🚀 Get in Front of Investors Who Already Want What You’ve Built

Coming to JPM? Pitch to active investors and decision-makers for the Women’s Health Pitch Showcase Share this coupon code: WMNSHLTH20

• Visit the registration link: https://eventship.com/event/01-12-26-global-innovation-in-women-s-health-pitch-showcase

• They will sign in or create an account with Eventship.

• They can select the General Admission ticket type to avail the discount.

• Attached is a flyer that you can share with your community and post on your social media accounts.

We are excited to welcome you to the Global Innovation in Women's Health Pitch Showcase 2026!

Candid insights. Tactical advice. Real talk on what investors actually look for.

Too many brilliant women-led startups struggle to get noticed by VCs.

It’s not always about your product—it’s about how you position, present, and prove your traction.

In this episode, I sat down with Aparajita Chauhan, investor at Volition Capital, to talk about what makes a founder investable—before they even start raising.

From decoding due diligence to how your leadership team communicates under pressure, we unpacked what founders need to know to build trust and stay on an investor’s radar.

What You’ll Learn:

✅ What investors like Aparajita actually want to see before a pitch deck

✅ The #1 thing that gets founders remembered (hint: it’s not flashy branding)

✅ How to talk about your CAC, KPIs, and ROI with clarity—not guesswork

✅ Why founder-team alignment can make or break your deal

✅ How to build relationships with investors early—even if you're not raising yet

✅ Where women founders still face the biggest barriers (and how to navigate them)

✅ Want to Keep Growing Without Losing Clients?

Here are 3 ways we can help you today:

🎤 Be a Featured Guest on the Provider’s Edge

Have traction and a story to share? Apply to join us on the show: PulsePointPath.com/Call-Sabrina

📊 Make Your Pitch Investor-Ready

Send us your draft and let me rewrite it so it becomes a funding magnet 👉 PitchToYes.com

🚀 Get in Front of Investors Who Already Want What You’ve Built

Not every investor needs a white paper, they need a reason to believe. At CapitalEngine.vc, we match you with aligned capital so your traction gets traction.

Let’s be honest—founders are burned out from cold outreach and investor ghosting.

You’ve built something real, but the right people just aren’t seeing it.

What if the fastest path to capital was through vetted relationships that already believe in your mission?

This isn’t your typical panel.

You’re about to sit in on a private investor roundtable from Venture Vitality, a global gathering hosted by PulsePoint Path and our venture partners.

In the room: seed and Series A investors, Medicaid fund managers, consumer health VCs, quantum & AI fund builders, FDA-cleared founders, LATAM commercialization experts, and healthcare operators with international scale.

In this episode, we pull back the curtain on how startup capital is actually getting deployed in 2025 and what investors are really looking for in a noisy, AI-saturated market.

✅ Why “trust-first” deal flow is outperforming cold pitches

✅ How to make your startup defensible when AI can copy you in weeks

✅ What funders like DFX, Equal Opportunity Ventures, and Angel Squad are doing differently

✅ How to leverage Health Board Advisor’s global ecosystem to access capital and credibility

✅ Where women and diverse founders are finally being prioritized—and funded

✅ Why domain expertise is the new power play in healthcare AI

Timestamps:

02:22 – Inside the Venture Vitality Investor Roundtable

02:54 – What Differentiation Really Means in an AI-Crowded Market

04:22 – Domain Expertise as the #1 Success Factor

05:37 – The Real ICP & Minimal Sellable Product Problem

07:26 – Why Startups Must Go Narrow + Deep (Not Wide + Shallow)

08:32 – AI, Regulation, and Ethics: The New Founder Blind Spots

10:44 – Know What You Don’t Know (Avoiding FDA & Reimbursement Pitfalls)

12:13 – Business Models, Workflow Integration & Real User Adoption

13:41 – The 3 Pillars Every Health Startup Must Nail

15:17 – Solving Real Problems vs. Building Cool Tech

15:52 – Quantum’s Coming Impact on Healthcare Innovation

19:23 – Key Takeaways from the Discussion

🎧 Related Episodes You’ll Love

📍 Ep 171 – Why Founders Fail When They Ignore This with Monica McKitterick

📍 Ep 170 – From Implementation to Optimization: Never Lose a Client Again Ep 170 with Sandra Johnson

📍 Ep 169 – How AgeTech Startups Win Hospital Trust With Wound-Care Pilots Ep 169 with Amy Cassata

🎤 Be a Featured Guest on the Provider’s Edge

Have traction and a story to share? Apply to join us on the show: PulsePointPath.com/Call-Sabrina

📊 Ready to turn your pitch into a magnet?

Send us your draft, let me rewrite it for you 👉 PitchToYes.com

🎯 Get You In Front of Investors

We match you with the most aligned investors and decision-makers who care about your niche already. Apply at CapitalEngine.vc

AI won't win in healthcare unless clinicians—and patients—trust it.

In this episode, I sat down with healthcare innovation expert Linda Macomber, who’s been at the forefront of digital transformation for over 35 years, leading initiatives with Kaiser, IBM, and the VA.

Her message is clear: your tech isn’t the hero—the human insight behind it is.

Learn What You’ll Discover:

🔹 Why AI is not a revolution—but a renaissance that blends human wisdom with digital intelligence

🔹 The biggest mistakes founders make when building in silos (and how to fix it)

🔹 What it really means to deliver personalized care and distributed access

🔹 How to rethink your solution as part of a broader care pathway—not just a point product

🔹 The one mindset shift every founder needs to go from “protocols” to people-powered innovation

🎧 Related Episodes You’ll Love

Episode 150: How to Spot HealthTech Startups That Prevent Costly Readmissions — With Dr. Colin Banas. This one digs into how systems connect (interoperability, workflow gaps) and why tech alone isn’t enough.

Episode 151: Tech Equity Is the Missing Link in Health Equity with Bevey Miner Ep 151— A powerful fit for founders dealing with data, bias, AI and ecosystem context.

Episode 114: Nurse Entrepreneur: A Founder's Perspective with Susan Davis, Ep 114 — An episode that appears to focus on nursing, workflow, informatics and front‑line care systems. Since Linda brings a nursing + informatics background, this is a strong anchor for themes of clinical trust and integration.

🎧 Apple Podcasts: Your Tech Isn’t Failing—Your Compliance Strategy Is (Ep 148)

💻 YouTube: Scaling Smart: How Founders Protect Their Burn Rate (Ep 162)

📝 SabrinaRunbeck.com Blog: The 5D System to Build Sustainable HealthTech Growth

✅ Want to Keep Growing Without Losing Clients?

Here are 3 ways we can help you today:

🎤 Be a Featured Guest on the Provider’s Edge

Have traction and a story to share? Apply to join us on the show: PulsePointPath.com/Call-Sabrina

📊 Make Your Pitch Investor-Ready

Send us your draft and let me rewrite it so it becomes a funding magnet 👉 PitchToYes.com

🚀 Get in Front of Investors Who Already Want What You’ve Built

Not every investor needs a white paper, they need a reason to believe. At CapitalEngine.vc, we match you with aligned capital so your traction gets traction.

We went beyond basic health coverage. From understanding multigenerational expectations to implementing creative, budget-conscious perks like flexible PTO or caregiver support—this is about building a workplace people want to stay in.

Here’s what you’ll walk away with:

♦️When to start offering benefits (hint: before you're forced to)

♦️What employees really want across generations

♦️How to budget for retention without sacrificing runway

♦️How regulations shift at the 50- and 100-employee marks

♦️Why avoiding an awkward conversation with your broker might be costing you

🎧 Related Episodes You’ll Love

📍 Ep 171 – Why Founders Fail When They Ignore This with Monica McKitterick

📍 Ep 170 – From Implementation to Optimization: Never Lose a Client Again Ep 170 with Sandra Johnson

📍 Ep 169 – How AgeTech Startups Win Hospital Trust With Wound-Care Pilots Ep 169 with Amy Cassata

🎧 Apple Podcasts: Your Tech Isn’t Failing—Your Compliance Strategy Is (Ep 148)

💻 YouTube: Scaling Smart: How Founders Protect Their Burn Rate (Ep 162)

📝 SabrinaRunbeck.com Blog: The 5D System to Build Sustainable HealthTech Growth

✅ Want to Keep Growing Without Losing Clients?

Here are 3 ways we can help you today:

🎤 Be a Featured Guest on the Provider’s Edge

Have traction and a story to share? Apply to join us on the show: PulsePointPath.com/Call-Sabrina

📊 Make Your Pitch Investor-Ready

Send us your draft and let me rewrite it so it becomes a funding magnet 👉 PitchToYes.com

🚀 Get in Front of Investors Who Already Want What You’ve Built

Not every investor needs a white paper, they need a reason to believe. At CapitalEngine.vc, we match you with aligned capital so your traction gets traction.