A new technology platform is using AI to speed things up dramatically ↓
It can take up to seven years to update critical resources that guide practitioners on how to support people living with the effects of stroke. Between updates, time-poor doctors have to collate and translate rapidly changing evidence into practice.
But a new technology platform is using AI to speed things up dramatically. Covidence is a web-based software that uses artificial intelligence to help the academic research community conduct thorough systematic reviews at scale, fast. Designed by researchers for researchers, the platform supports more than 200,000 researchers at over 200 universities – enabling seamless collaboration and saving precious time. It provides free access to users in low-income countries and those participating in COVID-19 research.
The platform has already changed the game for the stroke community, enabling stroke practitioners to access guidelines that are continually updated with the latest research.
Bridging the funding gap ↓
In July 2021, Covidence approached Sefa to support its short to medium term capital requirements.
While the platform anticipates a larger grant in the medium term, it needed a capital injection to support its continued product development and revenue growth.
Sefa successfully raised a $2 million debt syndicate from six impact investors, providing Covidence funding over a 12-month period.
“I'm a big fan of Sefa,” says Sid Galada, Chief Revenue Officer at Covidence. “Not just because they're good humans, but also from a pure capability perspective. I've worked with a lot of commercial enterprises and the striking difference for me was just how much they understood us and our domain. Their network also meant we had access to investors we normally wouldn’t have had.”
Bruce Mowson, whose investment portfolio consists mostly of impact investments, is part of the syndicate.
“I want the money I invest to do good. But it has to be balanced with practicalities as well. When I researched the product and downloaded the software, I was so impressed. And their business model made sense so I was happy to support it,” Bruce says.
Sid says thanks for this funding, they were able to continue their development process.
“We didn’t have to slow it down – in fact we hired 6 new staff, launched a raft of new features and expanded into Europe, the Middle East and Africa.”
Creating efficiency on both sides ↓
Covidence also benefits from having a single coordinator for its investor interactions, allowing it to concentrate on its core activities and ultimately deliver greater impact.
With our service in place, impact investors like Bruce, benefit from a streamlined investment process that reduces operational risk for all parties involved, without needing access to in-house resources or systems.
“Sefa creates opportunities for investors that wouldn’t otherwise happen. It also facilitated the entire process for the partnership including the legal structure, which made me comfortable to invest. I can’t imagine it working so well without that agent in the middle,” Bruce says.
