AI is fueling a quest for perfect health beyond the wealthy

How much would you pay for an additional year of health?

Peng T. Ong, a long-time venture capital investor in Southeast Asia, wagers that most people would be willing to pay a fortune.

Image credit: Ulla

Some already are. Customers of Elyx Life, the Singapore-based concierge longevity service Ong co-founded in January, charges US$120,000 a year for highly personalized care. Clients can aim to achieve specific health goals, whether that’s running a marathon at age 90, staying sharp and retaining cognitive functions at age 95, or something else entirely.

Part of Elyx Life’s hefty price tag goes toward premium tests. The diagnostics tests included in the membership account for about a quarter of the annual fee, says Ong, who is also the firm’s executive chairman.

Elyx Life is tackling what the team hypothesizes is an “adherence” issue – many people don’t listen to their doctors’ advice. To solve this, the firm’s concierge platform coordinates services like arranging meals at hotels or finding a personal trainer who’s already been briefed on a clients’ needs.

Meanwhile, a team of 10 experts, including physiotherapists, podiatrist, nutritionists, fitness trainers, medical chemists, and doctors also collaborate to look at a client’s file holistically to ensure that needed drugs don’t counteract each other.

Peng T. Ong, co-founder and executive chairman of Elyx Life / Photo credit: Elyx Life

Gathering the data, understanding it, and figuring out steps to take is “a full-time job,” Ong tells Tech in Asia in a recent interview. “Your mental bandwidth is the biggest problem with your health today.”

As consumers generate more health data through blood tests, wearables, and other monitoring tools, a growing number of startups are betting that AI can help make sense of it all.

Not another ChatGPT

Among the companies in this field is Finland-headquartered Oura, which filed for an IPO in May and has sold over 5.5 million AI-powered wellness rings since 2015.

In an “era of information at your fingertips anytime that you want,” customers are increasingly concerned about whether they’re getting the right information, Dr. Tanvi Jayaraman, Oura’s clinical lead for health AI, tells Tech in Asia. “Right now, when you go online, you are seeing generic answers to very specific questions,” she says.

Generic AI chatbots like ChatGPT can fall short when it comes to giving health advice, prompting startups to build their own AI models.

Is any of this affordable?

Humans still required