Pear Suite

High-Level Overview

Pear Suite is a digital health company that builds an AI-powered social care navigation platform empowering community health workers (CHWs) to address social determinants of health (SDOH).[1][2][3] It serves health plans, community-based organizations (CBOs), community centers, outreach nonprofits, and health systems by enabling culturally sensitive care navigation via phone and text, with tools for screening, decision support, automated recommendations, workflow automation, patient tracking, and billing to unlock reimbursements.[1][2][3] The platform solves disconnected systems, inconsistent funding, and collaboration challenges in community health, boosting member engagement, health outcomes, and cost reduction while achieving nearly perfect customer retention (96%), over 100 customers across 24 states, partnerships with 300+ CBOs and 2,500 CHWs, and serving 100,000+ people.[1][2][6] Growth momentum includes $2.62M in early funding from investors like Flare Capital Partners, Rock Health Capital, AARP, and a $7.6M Series A in October 2025 to expand its provider network and Medicare/Medicaid contracts.[1][3]

Origin Story

Pear Suite was founded in 2021 in Honolulu, Hawaii, by co-founder and CEO Colby Takeda and team, initially providing CHW support during the COVID-19 pandemic to help thousands of families access health and social services in a culturally sensitive, tech-enabled manner.[1][2][3] The idea emerged from observing common challenges for nonprofits, social services agencies, and healthcare organizations—disconnected systems, inconsistent funding, and poor collaboration—prompting a platform to connect CHWs with actionable SDOH data and reimbursements.[2] Early traction came from rapid expansion during the pandemic, evolving into a nationwide hub managing hundreds of CHWs, partnerships with 100+ organizations serving 50,000+ members, and proven scalability with high retention.[2][6] Pivotal moments include hitting 100 customers in 24 states by 2024 and the 2025 Series A to 10x its provider network.[1][3]

Core Differentiators

• AI-Powered, Turnkey Platform: Customizable screening tools, decision trees, automated recommendations, follow-ups, and billing enable CHWs to transform SDOH data into culturally sensitive, person-centered care navigation—all via phone/text, with claims infrastructure for sustainable reimbursement from Medicaid/Medicare/health plans.[1][3][6]
• National Provider Network and Wrap-Around Services: Builds and scales a hub of hundreds of CHWs and 300+ CBOs (average 6-10 CHWs each), connecting them to health plans while handling contracting, clinical support, and administrative bottlenecks for small and large providers alike.[2][3][6]
• Proven Performance and Retention: 96% customer retention, serving 100,000+ people across 24 states with 100+ customers, demonstrating reliability in boosting engagement, outcomes, and profitability for underserved communities.[1][6]
• Focus on Lived Experience and Equity: Leverages CHWs' cultural/linguistic relevance for root-cause health interventions, blending policy shifts (e.g., state recognition of CHWs) with tech to make community care scalable and reimbursable.[3][6]

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Pear Suite rides the surging trend of SDOH integration in healthcare, amplified by post-COVID recognition of CHWs as essential for addressing inequities, with states expanding Medicaid/Medicare reimbursements for community-based care.[3][6] Timing is ideal amid policy shifts enabling billing for CHW services—previously grant-dependent—allowing Pear Suite's platform to eliminate reimbursement hurdles and scale CBOs nationwide.[6] Market forces like rising healthcare costs, value-based care mandates, and AI adoption favor its model, which reduces care gaps and coordinates fragmented systems while influencing the ecosystem by amplifying CHWs (2,500+ via Pear Suite) and partnering with dozens of health plans to reach millions.[3] As a Hawaii-based innovator, it drives systems change, proving tech can sustain frontline workers and improve long-term outcomes in a $4T+ U.S. healthcare market shifting toward preventive, community-led models.[1][6]

Quick Take & Future Outlook

Pear Suite is poised to 10x its provider network post-Series A, deepen Medicare penetration, and solidify CHWs as healthcare staples through AI enhancements and new contracts, potentially serving millions more.[3] Trends like AI-driven personalization, SDOH reimbursement expansion, and health equity mandates will propel growth, evolving its influence from niche enabler to national infrastructure for community care. This positions Pear Suite to redefine scalable, reimbursable public health—transforming pandemic-era innovation into enduring ecosystem impact, much like its origins helping thousands amid crisis.