Patientory CEO Chrissa McFarlane Reflects on a Decade of Healthtech Innovation

Only 1 in 10 startups survive 10 years, but Patientory has beaten the odds.

Published on Mar. 4, 2026

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Chrissa McFarlane, CEO of Atlanta-based healthtech startup Patientory, discusses how the company's business model has evolved over the past decade. What started as a blockchain-enabled patient data wallet has grown into an enterprise health data infrastructure platform serving insurers, employers, and government partners. McFarlane shares insights on Patientory's journey, including navigating the rise of AI and blockchain technology, adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic, and building a team that has transitioned from startup experimentation to institutional execution.

Why it matters

Patientory's story highlights the challenges and opportunities of building a lasting tech company in the healthcare industry. As one of the few Southeast startups to survive more than a decade, Patientory's evolution provides valuable lessons on pivoting a business model, capitalizing on emerging technologies, and scaling a team to meet the needs of enterprise customers.

The details

When Patientory first launched in 2015, it was positioned as a blockchain-enabled patient data wallet focused on empowering individuals to access and control their health information. Over the past 10 years, the company has evolved its business model to become an enterprise health data infrastructure platform, providing an 'AI activation layer' for insurers, employers, and government partners. This shift has involved building out enterprise-grade identity and consent architecture, API integrations to enable multi-AI platform compatibility, and expanding into global markets like South Korea.

  • Patientory was founded in 2015.
  • The company pitched at Atlanta Startup Battle in 2016.
  • Hypepotamus first profiled Patientory and CEO Chrissa McFarlane in 2017.
  • The inflection point for AI in healthcare came around 2022-2023.
  • Patientory is now entering its Series A funding phase.

The players

Patientory

An Atlanta-based healthtech startup that has evolved from a blockchain-enabled patient data wallet into an enterprise health data infrastructure platform.

Chrissa McFarlane

The CEO and founder of Patientory, who has led the company through its transformation over the past decade.

Korea Startup Grand Challenge

A program that supported Patientory's expansion into the South Korean market.

Moderna

A pharmaceutical company that Patientory supported during the COVID-19 pandemic by enabling secure data sharing and more efficient clinical trial recruitment.

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What they’re saying

“The idea was personal. I saw firsthand how fragmented health data can lead to misdiagnosis and poor outcomes. The healthcare system doesn't move with the patient — data doesn't follow the individual.”

— Chrissa McFarlane, CEO, Patientory (Hypepotamus)

“AI is only as powerful as the data it can access. I knew that if healthcare ever fully embraced AI, it would require unified, permissioned, patient-controlled data.”

— Chrissa McFarlane, CEO, Patientory (Hypepotamus)

“The inflection point came around 2022–2023. Once generative AI entered mainstream conversation, enterprise healthcare leaders began asking the right question: 'Where does the data come from?'”

— Chrissa McFarlane, CEO, Patientory (Hypepotamus)

What’s next

As Patientory enters its Series A funding phase, the company is focused on bringing on a lead institutional investor aligned with its long-term infrastructure positioning and global scale ambitions.

The takeaway

Patientory's journey over the past decade demonstrates the resilience and adaptability required to build a lasting healthtech company. By pivoting its business model, capitalizing on emerging technologies like AI and blockchain, and scaling its team to meet enterprise-level needs, Patientory has beaten the odds and become one of the few Southeast startups to survive more than 10 years.