Diabetes management startup Clivi wants to be 'Livongo of Latin America'

More than 422 million people worldwide have diabetes, with the World Health Organization noting that the majority of people with the disease live in low- and middle-income countries .

In Latin America, there are more than 40 million adults with diabetes, according to Statista. And, with the global digital health market poised to hit $1.5 trillion in the next seven years, Clivi, a Mexican diabetes management startup, wants to help control the disease. through its comprehensive, technological and personalized approach to the delivery of diabetes health care.

“In Mexico, there is on average one endocrinologist for almost 10,000 patients,” Ricardo Moguel, founder and CEO of Clivi, told TechCrunch. "You can see a doctor every three months, but for chronic conditions, patients have to make decisions every day."

Clivi strikes a balance between humans and technology by connecting patients with endocrinologists, nutritionists and psychologists and allowing users to access follow-up and treatment plans through the communication channel of their choice, for example WhatsApp, so that they can better achieve their treatment goals and adhere to lifestyle changes.

The company also provides all the supplies, such as the glucometer, test strips and blood tests, as well as the medications. Although health plans start at MX$790 per month, the average patient will pay MX$40 per month with private insurance, Moguel said.

He explained that people living with diabetes in Latin America often start treating their disease late, which can reduce their life expectancy by 10 years. Clivi's goal is to help patients recover four of those years.

Since going live in October 2021, Clivi's platform has so far helped thousands of patients, 94% of whom achieved diabetes control within six months, Moguel said. The company currently sees an average of 2,000 new patients joining the platform each month. It has also reached MX$1 million in annual recurring revenue over the past 15 months, and Moguel expects to multiply that growth by 10x over the next 12 months.

Over the next five years, the company aims to serve 1 million people through its digital clinic and remote diabetes monitoring service, Moguel said.

Today, it announced $10 million in seed funding to help achieve this goal. The investment was co-led by Dalus Capital and Foundation Capital and involved a group of investors including Cathay Innovation, through its C. Entrepreneurs fund; Femsa Ventures; Quiet capital; 500; Next Billion Companies; and Conexo. There was also a group of angel investors, including Jüsto Founder & CEO Ricardo Weder, Kueski Founder & CEO Adalberto Flores, Trust Networks Co-Founder Suresh Batch, 99 & Mara Founder & CEO Ariel Lambrecht , Meta leader Tara Syed and Reina Madre co-founders Vicente Aristegui and Juan Moctezuma.

The new funding will be used to finalize the product, including its artificial intelligence technology so that more functions are automated and doctors can increase their ability to treat patients, Moguel said. The company will also expand its work with businesses and public health organizations in Mexico. It hopes to "dominate the Mexican market and become the #1 diabetes clinic in Mexico by next year".

“This will help us prepare the ground before we start expanding our solution to other Spanish-speaking territories in the region,” Moguel said. "This is the blueprint to become not just the Livongo of Latin America, but the biggest player in diabetes and chronic disease in all of Latin America."