In a world where healthcare startups often promise to “revolutionize” care, most innovations end up as incremental improvements. But occasionally, a team emerges with an idea that feels genuinely different; like they might just be onto something big. That’s the story of Human Health, a new venture launched by former Canva leaders, and its flagship platform RhinoMAP. Their mission? To change how we treat chronic respiratory diseases by using AI not just to diagnose, but to understand the invisible signals inside the human body.
This is not your run of the mill AI in healthcare tale. It is part startup hustle, part scientific leap, and part deeply personal pursuit to ease the burden of diseases that affect hundreds of millions worldwide. Let’s take a closer look at their founding story, what makes RhinoMAP different, and why this moment might mark a turning point in chronic respiratory care.
1. The Founders’ Journey: From Design to Diagnosis
The founding story begins in an unlikely place, the design software world. The co-founders of Human Health cut their teeth at Canva, where they helped build one of the most widely used creative platforms in the world. But while Canva empowered millions to design, these leaders felt a pull toward a different kind of impact rooted in science, medicine, and human wellbeing.
As the story goes, one of the co-founders had a family member with chronic respiratory illness. They saw firsthand the inefficiencies and frustrations in treatment. Inhalers that were not matched to actual need, medications prescribed more on trial and error than precision, and a lack of real time data about how the disease was progressing. That experience sparked a question, what if we could use data and AI to detect the earliest, most invisible signs of airway inflammation and tailor treatments more precisely?
Human Health was born. Their goal wasn’t just to digitize respiratory care but to rethink it from the ground up merging clinical science, patient centered design, and the latest advances in artificial intelligence.
2. Introducing RhinoMAP: A Radar for the Airways
The result of this vision is RhinoMAP, a platform designed to act like a radar system for the lungs. Instead of relying solely on spirometry, the traditional blow into this tube test or patient reported symptoms, RhinoMAP gathers a new type of signal, biomarkers from nasal passages, combined with AI-driven analysis of patient inputs.
Here’s what makes it different:
Biological Markers: By focusing on nasal inflammation markers, RhinoMAP can capture a more direct and immediate picture of airway health. Think of it as listening to the early whispers before the body starts shouting.
AI-Enhanced Monitoring: The platform applies machine learning to detect patterns in biomarker changes, patient reported symptoms, and external data like air quality. This means it can forecast flare ups before they happen.
Precision Care: With this predictive capability, clinicians can adjust treatments earlier, reducing reliance on one size fits all inhalers and cutting down on ineffective therapies.
If it works at scale, RhinoMAP could mark a shift from reactive to proactive care in respiratory medicine.
3. Why Respiratory Care Needs a Rethink
Chronic respiratory conditions like asthma and COPD affect nearly 600 million people globally. The cost burden is staggering estimated in the hundreds of billions annually, yet outcomes often remain frustratingly uneven.
Overtreatment vs. Undertreatment: Many patients receive more medication than they need, while others receive too little. Both scenarios create avoidable risks.
Hospitalizations: Respiratory flare ups are among the leading causes of emergency visits worldwide. Many could be prevented with earlier intervention.
Data Blindness: Clinicians often rely on patient descriptions (“I feel short of breath today”) rather than objective, measurable, real time signals.
This is where RhinoMAP has potential. By providing continuous, data driven monitoring, it could help patients avoid unnecessary ER trips, reduce medication waste, and improve quality of life. In a field where “good enough” treatments have been the status quo, this kind of precision could be game changing.
4. The Role of AI: Friend, Not Foe
One of the most fascinating aspects of RhinoMAP is how it positions AI. Instead of trying to replace clinicians or automate diagnoses outright, it augments clinical judgment with richer, earlier signals. That distinction matters.
For Clinicians: RhinoMAP is a decision-support tool, not a decision-maker. Doctors still interpret results and guide treatments.
For Patients: The platform builds trust by showing its work. Patients can see how biomarker changes and environmental factors correlate with their symptoms.
For Health Systems: By focusing on preventing expensive flare ups and optimizing medication use, the ROI case is compelling.
In short, RhinoMAP uses AI not as the star of the show but as the quiet amplifier behind the curtain, enabling better human decisions.
5. Funding and Academic Ties
The startup recently secured an $8.4 million partnership deal with Diag-Nose.io, supported by Australian government initiatives and collaborations with Monash University. This backing provides two critical advantages:
Scientific Credibility: By rooting its technology in academic partnerships, Human Health can validate RhinoMAP’s efficacy in rigorous clinical trials.
Runway for Scaling: With capital in hand, they can focus on expanding trials, refining the AI models, and preparing for broader market entry.
It’s worth noting that respiratory care has historically been underfunded relative to other specialties. This infusion of capital signals that investors see respiratory AI as an overlooked but promising frontier.
6. Challenges Ahead: Trust, Regulation, and Adoption
Of course, no healthcare innovation comes without hurdles. For Human Health, several stand out:
Regulatory Pathways: In Australia, the U.S., and Europe, tools like RhinoMAP will need approval as medical devices. Navigating this landscape will be time-intensive.
Patient Trust: Asking patients to adopt a new monitoring approach means overcoming skepticism. Education and design simplicity will be key.
Integration into Workflows: Doctors already complain about technology overload. RhinoMAP will need to slot seamlessly into existing EHRs and care pathways to gain traction.
These challenges are real, but they are not insurmountable. And given the founders’ design background, they may be uniquely positioned to make adoption easier for both patients and providers.
7. What It Means for the Future of Chronic Care
Zooming out, RhinoMAP represents something bigger than respiratory health alone. It exemplifies the next wave of healthcare innovation; tools that don’t just digitize existing workflows but fundamentally rethink how care is delivered.
From Episodic to Continuous: Instead of episodic checkups, care becomes continuous and predictive.
From Generic to Personalized: Instead of “everyone with asthma gets this inhaler,” treatments are tailored to the patient’s actual biological signals.
From Costly to Preventive: Instead of waiting for flare-ups that send patients to the ER, interventions happen earlier and cheaper.
If RhinoMAP succeeds, it could pave the way for similar biomarker AI platforms in other specialties such as cardiology, endocrinology, & even mental health.
8. Takeaways for Healthcare Leaders
For hospital executives, payers, and policymakers, the Human Health story offers several lessons:
Watch Respiratory AI Closely: This is a space ripe for disruption, and early movers could capture significant clinical and financial gains.
Pilot Programs Matter: Before scaling, test these platforms in controlled populations to validate ROI and workflow fit.
Patient Education Is Critical: No matter how powerful the tech, adoption hinges on patient trust and understanding.
Design Thinking Counts: Don’t underestimate the advantage of founders with a background in user experience. Adoption in healthcare depends as much on usability as it does on efficacy.
Closing Thought
Human Health and RhinoMAP remind us that sometimes the most powerful innovations come from crossing boundaries from design to diagnosis, from digital creativity to biological insight. Their work has the potential to reduce suffering for millions living with chronic respiratory illness, while also serving as a model for how AI can quietly but profoundly reshape care.
It’s too soon to declare victory, but the early signs suggest that Human Health may be breathing new life into a field that has long gasped for innovation.
