Gabriella RestrepoInteresting fact: Co-founded his own company at only 23 years old while on a D1 football scholarship in the US.
TL;DR
Introducing our Founder’s Associate, Halvard Ramstad. Halvard has a background in sports, and has worked in the health-tech space for a fast-growing start-up in London for the past years.
What did you do before Livv?
I grew up in Oslo, Norway and was very involved in sports from a young age, especially football. I received a professional contract with FC Lyn Oslo during high school and earned a scholarship to play Division 1 football at the University of Delaware in the US shortly thereafter. At the University of Delaware, I completed a BSc Economics degree with a concentration in computer science.
During my undergraduate studies, I co-founded UtdanningX AS, an EdTech platform that helps Scandinavian students apply to study at elite universities abroad. After this, I completed internships at KPMG in the Netherlands, and at BIS Oxford Economics in Australia.
I later completed an MSc Management degree from Imperial College London, where I rowed crew and competed in various regattas for the University’s rowing team.
My professional journey started at Amazon in their HQ in London before getting an incredible opportunity to be a part of a fast-growing health-tech company in London, Terra API.
How did you become interested in health-tech and what led you to Livv Health?
Despite my passion for football, I was uncertain about my long-term career path and I actually initially had a dream in high school of becoming a medical doctor.
At the time, I felt studying economics offered a broad range of opportunities. I took courses in computer science to better understand the tech side of building a company.
My interest in health-tech was sparked by a career-ending knee injury during my last years in the US, which never healed after a couple of unsuccessful surgeries in the states. I got to experience first-hand the inefficiencies of the healthcare sector when it comes to data-handling and the need for urgent digitization in the industry.
This experience drew me to the London-based health-tech company, Terra, and eventually now back to Oslo after having lived abroad for many years. Through a mutual connection, I got in touch with our CEO, Sverre, and I was further inspired after reading Ishita's book on AI in healthcare.
Hobbies outside the office?
I remain passionate about sports, even though my knee injury limits my ability to run. In the past year, I’ve gotten into road cycling and I took up rowing while in England.
Recently, I’ve just acquired my hunting license in Norway and I enjoy cross-country skiing, sailing and a lot of other sports out in nature. Beyond sports, I love traveling and meeting people from different cultures, which I’m glad I’ve gotten to do a lot over the years while living abroad.
Why do you believe in Livv Health and what is the problem we are solving?
Firstly, it came from my own experience with a career-ending knee injury, involving multiple surgeries - two in the US and one in Norway - and managing the hassle of countless documents from the UK, Norway, and the US. This led me to the realization that our health documents are extremely fragmented across a lot of different sources.
It was very challenging to present a comprehensive and holistic picture of my own health to doctors in Norway after a time abroad. That is precisely the problem Livv Health aims to solve, and why I have such belief in our mission to create a more integrated and efficient system - I cannot understate how important it is for people to have ownership and control over their own health data.
If you could have dinner with any historical figure, who would it be and why?
I would choose Phil Knight, the founder of Nike. His book, "Shoe Dog," is a fantastic book and it fuelled my passion for entrepreneurship. I relate to his origins as a former athlete, and his unconventional path to success.
I admire his ability to build a successful company, a goal I aspire to achieve one day myself. He is also known for being a very down-to-earth and charismatic leader that fosters a friendly work environment with highly driven people, traits I greatly respect.
Lastly, what do you envision the healthcare system will look like in the future?
Currently, health data is fragmented across various sources like GP records, psychologists, wearables data, etc. In the future, I envision individuals owning and controlling their own health data, consolidated in one single place, similar to how personal banking apps operate today. This shift will promote preventative care rather than reactive, providing people with a comprehensive overview of their own health and empowering them to take proactive steps in managing their well-being continuously.
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