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FDA approval, fundraising, and the reality of building in healthcare according to BioticsAI founder

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Founders building in the healthcare space can’t just build fast and break things. Timelines stretch longer, stakes are higher, and success depends on navigating systems that reward rigor over speed. 

That’s exactly the reality Robhy Bustami, co-founder and CEO of BioticsAI, has been building in. His company is developing an AI copilot for ultrasound that helps detect fetal abnormalities, an area where misdiagnosis rates remain surprisingly high. Bustami joined Isabelle Johannessen on Build Mode to discuss how the company has navigated a highly regulated space and kept the team motivated while cutting through all the red tape.

BioticsAI started scrappy. The team built an early, functioning version of the product for under $100,000, an almost unheard-of milestone in the medical device world. That prototype helped them win TechCrunch Startup Battlefield in 2023, bringing early visibility and credibility. In January, they gained FDA approval, which means they can begin launching in hospitals and growing the business at a new rate. 

From day one, the team approached product development with FDA approval in mind. Instead of building first and figuring out regulation later, they integrated clinical validation, regulatory strategy, and product development into a single process. That meant working closely with clinicians, collecting large-scale datasets, and running structured clinical studies before ever reaching the submission stage.

The FDA process itself is often viewed as a black box, but Bustami emphasizes that founders don’t have to navigate it blindly. Early engagement with regulators, through pre-submission meetings, helped the team align on study design and expectations. Still, risk never fully disappears. For many investors, the biggest question is simple: What if the FDA says no?

Internally, those long timelines create a different kind of challenge: keeping a team motivated when the biggest milestone is years away. At BioticsAI, that meant building a culture of alignment across engineers, clinicians, and researchers, ensuring everyone got to see the wins that were happening.

 “Making sure everyone is completely aligned, even if it’s outside of their technical scope,” Bustami said, “constantly seeing wins on the R&D side,” from clinical studies to new healthcare partnerships.

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Now, with FDA clearance secured, BioticsAI is entering a new phase: deployment. The company is beginning to roll out its technology in hospitals, with plans to expand beyond obstetrics into broader areas of reproductive health.

Building in healthcare is a long game. It requires patience, discipline, and a willingness to operate in uncertainty. For founders willing to take that path, the reward isn’t just a successful company — it’s the chance to build something that genuinely changes how care is delivered.

Subscribe to Build Mode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you like to listen. Watch the full videos on YouTube. Isabelle Johannessen is our host. Build Mode is produced and edited by Maggie Nye. Audience Development is led by Morgan Little. And a special thanks to the Foundry and Cheddar video teams. 

Apply to Startup Battlefield: We are looking for early-stage companies that have an MVP. So nominate a founder (or yourself). Be sure to say you heard about Startup Battlefield from the Build Mode podcast. Apply here.

TechCrunch Disrupt 2026: We’re back for TechCrunch Disrupt on October 13 to 15 in San Francisco, where the Startup Battlefield 200 takes the stage. So if you want to cheer them on, or just network with thousands of founders, VCs, and tech enthusiasts, then grab your tickets.

Use code buildmode15 for 15% off any ticket type. 

When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.

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SSA Adeboye’s Media Aide Jide-Ojo Joins African Leaders for Sport Business Summit in Nairobi

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October 5, 2026

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Jide-Ojo Jide Olusola, SA Media to the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Grassroots Sports Development, Hon. Adeboye Anthony Adeyinka, has been named among the speakers for the Year of Return Africa (YORA) Summit & Expo 2026 holding in Nairobi, Kenya.

Jide-Ojo, Founder/CEO of 247SportsNetwork Limited, publishers of Sports247.ng, will join leading African business executives, investors, innovators and industry stakeholders at the summit scheduled for October 13–14 at Broadwalk Mall, Westlands, Nairobi.

The veteran media executive, who has accumulated over 30 years of experience in the media industry, will participate in the summit’s sport business segment on October 14, bringing perspectives from sports journalism, grassroots development, strategic communications, partnerships and the commercialisation of African sport.

Jide-Ojo joins a diverse speakers’ lineup that includes Blue Mahoe Capital Chairman and CEO David Mullings, Kenya Film Commission Board Chairman Sudi Wandabusi, Capital Markets Authority Blockchain and Fintech Analyst James Hillary Obonyo, Emmppek Group Chairman Emmanuel Audu-Ohwavborua, and B|E Strategy Founder and Chief Strategist Charles Ellison, among others.

The summit, themed “Fueling the Future: Unlocking Africa’s Entrepreneurial Potential,” will examine investment, innovation, technology, entrepreneurship and opportunities within Africa’s creative economy.

A major focus of the sport business conversation will be the monetisation of Africa’s sports, media and entertainment industry, including how the continent can transform its enormous sporting talent, passionate audiences and compelling stories into sustainable commercial opportunities.

Through Sports247 and his current media role supporting the Presidency’s grassroots sports development agenda, Jide-Ojo has consistently promoted emerging athletes, grassroots competitions and initiatives aimed at creating greater visibility and opportunities within Nigeria’s sports ecosystem.

His contribution in Nairobi is expected to highlight the increasingly important role of media, digital storytelling, athlete branding, sponsorship and strategic partnerships in building commercially sustainable African sports properties.

The Nairobi platform will also provide an opportunity to share Nigeria’s grassroots sports experience while strengthening connections between sport, media, investment and business across Africa.

Following the Nairobi programme, YORA activities will continue in Kilifi, Kenya, from October 16–17.

YORA Summit & EXPO Kenya, 2026 is a three-day event including YORA Awards taking place from  12th – 17th Nairobi | Kilifi, Kenya

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NAIPE 11th Annual Conference Moves to 12 Noon as 28 Stakeholders Back Event

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October 5, 2026

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About 28 insurance and pension regulators and operators have backed the upcoming 11th edition of the Nigerian Association of Insurance and Pension Editors (NAIPE) Annual Conference, scheduled to hold in Lagos.

This is even as the timing of the event scheduled to hold on Thursday, October 8, 2026, at Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, has been shifted from 9:00am to 12:00pm same day.

This is to allow Insurance operators, who will be attending Insurers Committee meeting earlier that day, conclude their meeting and attend the conference.

The national conference with a focus on the emerging market dynamics in Nigeria’s insurance and pension sectors, follows  the just concluded recapitalisation exercise in the insurance sector and ongoing exercise in the pension industry.

Themed: “Post-Recapitalisation and Market Dynamics in Insurance & Pension Sectors,” the Chief Executive Officer of United Capital Asset Management Limited, Dr. Odiri Oginni, will deliver the keynote address, focusing on the insurance  perspective while Mr. Oguche Aguda,
Founder and Managing Partner of HRISP Partners, will equally deliver a paper on the theme, focusing on the pension perspective.

The Group Managing Director of Custodian Investment Plc, Mr. Wole Oshin, will chair the event.

According to NAIPE, the conference is coming at a critical period for the two sectors, as insurance operators have just concluded their recapitalisation exercise, while pension operators are expected to conclude theirs in 2027.

The high level discourse will therefore examine how funds raised through recapitalisation can be strategically invested and deployed to generate stronger returns, deepen market confidence and improve service delivery to shareholders and policyholders.

Expected dignitaries include the Commissioner for Insurance & Chief Executive Officer of the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), Mr. Olusegun Omosehin; Director-General of the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Ms. Omolola Oloworaran; chief executives of insurance companies, broking firms, investment and securities companies and Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs), as well as regulators, labour unions, students and other stakeholders.

Speaking ahead of the conference, Chairperson of NAIPE, Mrs. Ebere Nwoji said, the annual gathering provides a platform for insurance and pension journalists to contribute to the development of both sectors by promoting greater public understanding of insurance and pension as instruments for financial security and protection against old-age poverty.

Nwoji expressed appreciation to operators and regulators in the two sectors for their continued support for the conference, stressing that, the benefits derived from the annual event outweigh the resources committed to organising it.

She described this year’s theme as timely, given the significant structural changes taking place in the insurance and pension industries through recapitalisation.

She noted that, the insurance industry concluded its recapitalisation exercise on July 31, 2026, while the pension industry is currently undergoing a similar process expected to be completed next year.

The NAIPE chairperson, particularly, commended the leadership of NAICOM for successfully concluding the insurance industry’s recapitalisation exercise, describing it as a major achievement for Omosehin.

According to her, the Commissioner ‘took the bull by the horns’ in breaking what she described as the longstanding cycle of inconclusive recapitalisation exercises in the insurance industry.

She also expressed optimism that the pension industry, under the leadership of Ms. Omolola Oloworaran, would achieve a seamless and successful recapitalisation exercise.

“The conference would provide operators with an opportunity to gain insights into prudent and judicious investment of the capital raised through the recapitalisation process.

“I am confident that speakers at the event would provide practical perspectives on how insurance and pension operators can deploy their strengthened capital bases to deliver superior investment returns while enhancing value for investors, shareholders and policyholders” she affirmed.

Meanwhile, NAICOM, PenCom, SanlamAllianz, Veritas Kapital and 24 others have offered their support and partnership towards the conference.

The post NAIPE 11th Annual Conference Moves to 12 Noon as 28 Stakeholders Back Event appeared first on Business Today NG.

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