Out-of-Pocket is a healthcare education company founded by Nikhil Krishnan that helps people understand how healthcare works and how to navigate it in practice. In this episode, a16z investing partner Jay Rughani and Nikhil discuss why health insurance is losing its role as the default way people access care. They explain how rising costs are pushing more consumers to pay out of pocket for diagnostics, preventive care, and navigation. The conversation also looks at what this shift means for startups, AI-powered tools, regulation, and access as healthcare continues to move beyond insurance.

Resources:

Follow Jay Rughani on X: https://twitter.com/JayRughani

Follow Nikhil Krishnan on X: https://twitter.com/nikillinit

Read Out of Pocket’s 2026 Predictions: https://www.outofpocket.health/p/out-of-pockets-2026-predictions

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Cofounders Jeremy Wohlwend and Gabriele Corso join the a16z podcast to discuss the launch of Boltz, a public benefit company building AI infrastructure for molecular biology. The conversation explains how breakthroughs following AlphaFold moved the field beyond protein structure prediction into modeling biomolecular interactions and binding strength, why open-source Boltz models saw rapid adoption across pharma and biotech, and how that work is now being productized. They outline the launch of Boltz Lab, a platform that brings protein and small-molecule design agents into scientist workflows, Boltz’s decision to operate as an infrastructure company rather than a therapeutics company, and how AI could reduce early drug discovery bottlenecks by improving molecular design and speeding iteration between computation and the lab.

Resources:

Follow Gabriele on X: https://twitter.com/GabriCorso

Follow Jeremy on X: https://twitter.com/jeremyWohlwend

Follow Jorge X: https://twitter.com/jorgecondebio

Follow Zak on X: https://twitter.com/zakdoric

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Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.

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In this episode, a16z GP Julie Yoo sits down with Peter McCanna, CEO of Baylor Scott & White Health, to break down how one of America's largest health systems is transforming from a supply-driven "walled castle" to a customer-centric ecosystem, and how it's achieving a 10% operating margin while most hospitals struggle to stay in the black.

They get into why helping his father navigate healthcare convinced Pete the entire system is fundamentally broken, what differentiates academic medical centers from community health systems, and why traditional hospital economics root out essential services like behavioral health. Peter also explains how ambient AI reduced physician burnout rates by 70%, why AI will eventually replace any job involving human-screen interaction, and what he looks for in startup partnerships beyond just TAM and business fundamentals.

Resources:

Follow Peter on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-mccanna-784619104

Follow Julie on X: @julesyoo

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Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.

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