Cent
Track: raisedWebsite ↗𝕏 @centai_healthLinkedIn ↗
potential 76 · scoop 78
Cent runs purpose-built screening centers in India that pair Siemens MRI and CT hardware with an acquired AI radiology platform. The company has completed 10,000 scans across three cities and raised $20 million total.
Scores run 0 to 100. Potential: how likely the firm is to become a real winner, weighing all six dimension scores, whether or not anyone has heard of it. Scoop: how unknown the firm still is to a well-read tech investor. High means the outlets that investor follows have not covered it yet, however good or old the firm is. How our top potential scores did.
Three stage-4 cancer deaths in 2024 led Practo founder Shashank ND to open India's first dedicated asymptomatic screening centers, which have now completed 10,000 scans.
Snapshot
- What they build
- Offers preventive whole-body scans; 10,000+ completed since 2025.
- Who buys
- Health-conscious individuals seeking preventive care.
- Comparables
- Preventive scans for X
- Sub-industry
- preventive health scans
Founder of Practo (prior exit/credibility in Indian healthtech).
How we found them
- Surfaced in issue
- Nov 2, 2026
- Round
- series a · $15,000,000
- Investors
- Blume Ventures, South Park Commons
- HQ
- India
- Discovery track
- raised
Dimension scores
- Team 82 out of 100
- Product 75 out of 100
- Traction 70 out of 100
- Market 80 out of 100
- Moat 60 out of 100
- Capital 75 out of 100
Analysis
Shashank ND recruited Anshul Khandelwal from Ola Electric and Arpit Garg from Lenskart to run operations and product. The three founders connected through South Park Commons India. They focus on centers built only for preventive scans rather than shared diagnostic labs.
The centers use custom Siemens MRI, CT, and DEXA suites plus the Medsee AI layer for multi-modal reports and organ-level scores. Members pay for a year of guided follow-up. Three owned sites in Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Delhi NCR have finished 10,000 scans, hold a 20,000-person waitlist, and generated roughly $2 million in early ARR. The team closed a $5 million seed then a $15 million Series A six months later.
India still detects most cancers and cardiac disease at late stages. Cent bets that India-specific longitudinal data and fixed protocols will create an edge before copycats match the hardware footprint and member model.
What they do
Cent operates purpose-built clinical prevention centers in India offering a standardized CCNM-protocol full-body scan (whole-body MRI, low-dose CT calcium/lung, DEXA, ECG/ECHO, 100+ biomarkers, optional genetics) synthesized by proprietary AI into organ-level Tru10 risk scores, followed by specialist review, doctor consultation, a year-long Cent Check membership with 6-month checkpoint and app support to enable early detection in asymptomatic adults.
Why now
India’s NCD burden (cancer, cardiac, metabolic, neuro) rising rapidly with urbanization/aging; consumer willingness to pay for premium preventive checks increasing in top metros; AI/radiology tools (faster MRI protocols, automated reporting) and affordable high-resolution imaging have matured enough for standardized, high-volume use; post-2024 personal founder catalyst aligned with market gap (late detection still dominant).
Founding story
Shashank’s 2024 personal losses crystallized the late-detection problem in Indian healthcare; he began shaping Cent in 2025. The team met via South Park Commons India; Anshul and Arpit joined to build the full-stack execution layer. Seed (~$5M, March 2026) came from SPC + OneFlow; operations began Q1 FY26 with partner labs before shifting to owned centers. The origin narrative emphasizes infrastructure built specifically for asymptomatic screening rather than retrofitting existing diagnostics.
Competitive position
Incumbents include hospital/lab executive health check packages (fragmented, lower imaging depth, no year-long guided follow-up) and scattered full-body MRI services. Closest startups: other Indian preventive players (e.g., Nura or similar MRI-focused services) and global analogs (Prenuvo/Ezra-style but India-localized with owned centers and multi-modal + ongoing support). Positioned as new lane via purpose-built preventive infrastructure + standardized protocol + longitudinal member model rather than competing directly in treatment or general diagnostics.
Defensibility
Emerging data moat from proprietary multi-modal scans + AI training on Indian cohort + longitudinal member data; infrastructure moat (purpose-built centers + custom Siemens protocols hard to replicate quickly at quality/scale); protocol standardization + doctor-reviewed output + year-long support creating switching costs; brand/trust leverage from Shashank’s Practo reputation in Indian healthtech. Not yet a strong network effect or regulatory license; replicable by well-capitalized players but execution on full vertical + data flywheel provides temporary edge.
Network density
0 of 3 founders from the same prior organization (distinct paths: Practo healthtech, Ola/Ola Electric mobility/EV, Lenskart retail/product). Early clinical/ops hires appear drawn from radiology, Siemens partnership ecosystem, and general tech/consumer backgrounds rather than a single alma mater or company cluster; no evidence of heavy concentration from one elite prior org.
Early team signals
Lead investors Blume Ventures (Karthik Reddy cited “obsessive ambition” on cancer diagnostics/protocols; prior healthtech bets include Tricog, Ultrahuman, HealthifyMe, Mave/Confido) and existing SPC (Prateek Mehta). Angels: Arun Sarin (ex-Vodafone CEO), Srinivas Narayanan (ex-OpenAI B2B CTO), Aprameya Radhakrishna, others. Siemens Healthineers strategic partnership for custom MRI protocols, workflow software, and research. Clinical leadership includes Dr. Nandakumar (chief radiologist).
Traction
- 10,000+ preventive whole-body scans completed across Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi NCR centers
- 3 operational owned centers (Bengaluru flagship April 2026, Mumbai, Gurugram/Delhi NCR)
- waitlists >20k
- Cent Check year-long membership launched Sept 2026
- seed ~$5M (SPC + OneFlow) followed by $15M Series A (Blume + SPC, equity+debt, Oct 2026) plus Medsee acquisition
- Siemens partnership announced
- early ARR cited ~$2M at seed stage with strong MoM growth
Opportunities
- Indian population-scale data for training India-specific AI baselines (diversity advantage vs. Western datasets)
- Potential insurance/government reimbursement tailwinds for proven early detection
- Medsee integration + Siemens co-development accelerating reporting throughput and research
- Expansion of Cent Check longitudinal model driving recurring revenue and retention
- Export of protocol/infrastructure playbook to other emerging markets with similar detection gaps
Risks / red flags
- Evidence base for broad whole-body MRI + multi-modal screening improving hard outcomes (survival, cost) remains limited/uncertain (Cochrane review in progress describing evidence as uncertain; risk of overdiagnosis/false positives in asymptomatic population)
- Capital-intensive model (MRI machines, purpose-built centers, Siemens hardware) creates execution and cash-burn risk at scale to 15 cities
- Claims (25% actionable findings, 1-in-40 immediate attention, 83% EDI) are company-reported without independent long-term validation
- Regulatory exposure on AI as medical device/diagnostics in India and data privacy
- Heavy reliance on Shashank’s Practo network/credibility plus co-founder consumer scaling; early-stage with hardware moat still building
- Crowded preventive lane with well-funded or established players
Hidden bets
- Full vertical integration, purpose-built centers (7,000 sq ft Bengaluru flagship with dedicated Siemens MRI/CT/DEXA configured for preventive use) + proprietary CCNM multi-modal protocol + in-house AI (Medsee acquisition for structured radiology reporting) + bioinformatics platform combining imaging, biomarkers, genetics, and longitudinal data into organ scores + Cent app for year-round tracking/doctor support
Key relationships
- Blume Ventures (Karthik Reddy)
- South Park Commons (Prateek Mehta)
- Arun Sarin (ex-Vodafone CEO)
- Srinivas Narayanan (ex-OpenAI B2B CTO)
- Aprameya Radhakrishna
- Siemens Healthineers (strategic partnership)
- Dr. Nandakumar (chief radiologist)
Founders
Citations
- https://www.cent.health/
- https://x.com/centai_health
- https://in.linkedin.com/company/centhealth
- https://www.business-standard.com/companies/start-ups/cent-raises-15-million-to-expand-ai-powered-preventive-healthcare-platform-126102701118_1.html
- https://sbr.com.sg/contributor/shashank-nd
- https://dealroom.co/people/anshul-k/
- https://in.linkedin.com/in/arpitgarg047
- https://www.southparkcommons.com/news/why-spc-invested-in-cent/
- https://startuptalky.com/news/cent-raises-15m-series-a-preventive-health/
- https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/markets/cent-raises-15-million-in-series-a-co-led-by-blume-ventures-and-spc-to-build-full-stack-preventive-health-platform-for-india/article71632165.ece