Lisa Suennen, managing partner of American Heart Association Ventures, joins StartUp Health for an Expert AMA on 35+ years of investing and operating in health innovation. She walks through how AHA Ventures' four funds think about heart, brain, and related conditions, where she's seeing real opportunity right now, and why she's skeptical of AI-for-AI's-sake pitches. She closes with her take on what actually makes a pitch land – and it's not the deck.

StartUp Health members joined live for the full hour, including a member-only Q&A not included in this 20-minute video excerpt.

🩺 35+ years in health innovation, from scaling a $5M startup to $800M in revenue

💡 A look inside AHA Ventures' four funds spanning heart, brain, and related conditions

🧠 Where Suennen is leaning in: stroke recovery, women's heart health, and conditions that quietly raise stroke risk

🤖 Her honest take on AI fatigue and why the story matters more than the buzzword

💰 What's really happening in health tech fundraising right now, and who's stepping up to fund it

🎯 Her advice on what makes a pitch land, and what kills one fast

📖 Why she says storytelling is "150% important" to getting funded

Join the community for access to live sessions like this one, with real-time Q&A alongside investors and fellow innovators: www.startuphealth.com