Stepful secures $55 million to educate healthcare professionals using AI.

      American hospitals are currently spending approximately $97 billion annually to rent staff that they cannot train quickly enough. Stepful believes that AI holds the key to addressing the supply issue and has secured $55 million in funding to explore this potential.

      The New York-based startup recently completed a Series C funding round led by the healthcare and fintech investor Oak HC/FT, with new investors including Foresite Capital, Hearst Ventures, and the Citi Impact Fund, alongside existing supporters like Y Combinator and the hospital group Intermountain Health.

      Stepful operates what it calls “school-as-a-service,” providing direct training for healthcare workers needed by hospitals. This model replaces the enrollment limitations and manual processes of traditional trade schools with an online platform enhanced by AI.

      This concept has gained traction, as Stepful reports having graduated over 32,000 "practice-ready" workers since its inception and now serves more than 35 health systems, including notable names like Mount Sinai, Ochsner, and Providence. Last year, it was named the leading edtech company in the US by TIME and Statista. Its training model offers employer-funded, interest-free education that allows individuals to transition from a high-school diploma to a six-figure healthcare position without leaving their jobs or incurring student debt.

      The demand stems from a significant structural shortage. Hospitals have relied on costly contract and agency personnel because the training infrastructure for nurses, technicians, and allied health roles was never designed to scale, with the practical components of these jobs being precisely what AI cannot replicate.

      Stepful's strategy involves an always-active platform that improves as it gathers more data from students and clinical experiences, aiming to expand that pipeline more affordably than traditional colleges or staffing agencies.

      The recent funding will support the development of advanced programs, such as registered nursing, respiratory therapy, and imaging, as well as further enhancement of the company's AI capabilities. Co-founder and CEO Carl Madi stated, “This capital enables us to strengthen our partnerships with hospitals and health systems and to introduce advanced degree programs.”

      Vig Chandramouli from Oak HC/FT described Stepful as “the only company we have seen that merges online education with an advanced AI engine to solve the talent supply issue at scale.”

      These claims are ambitious and warrant consideration against the uneven performance of AI in education, where promises of adaptive learning often outstrip actual results. However, since Stepful markets its services to employers rather than students, its revenue is linked to measurable outcomes such as graduates successfully passing certification and remaining employed.

      This creates a more robust business model compared to many AI healthtech claims, explaining why investors interested in applied AI are willing to invest. Currently, Stepful joins an expanding array of companies defining themselves as healthcare infrastructure rather than mere software providers. Whether it establishes itself as the "foundational" layer it aspires to be, or merely one of many, the $55 million provides the necessary resources to explore this path, while the pressing demand for workers in health systems ensures plenty of opportunities to pursue.