Posted at 11:00 a.m.
Who ?
Zhen Chen, Peter Chen (no, they are not brothers!) and Frédéric Blaise, co-founders of a digital platform serving people with musculoskeletal pain, which ensures an adequate transfer to a physiotherapist thanks to artificial intelligence (AI ). “Peter and I went to high school, CEGEP and university together,” says Zhen Chen, general manager. They met Frederic Blaise through the McGill Dobson Center for Entrepreneurship’s X-1 accelerator program when he was a mentor.
Peter Chen has pain in his knees; Frédéric, chronic back pain. And Zen? He is a trained physiotherapist. “About 200 million North Americans live with musculoskeletal pain,” he said. These people are looking for an effective solution. In the current system, because they are not in danger of death, we do not treat urgently, but such pain can limit daily life. »
The product
Because each pain would be unique, the trio developed the Paperminds platform, an artificial intelligence system that can understand what people are going through, analyze a problem and go about it with personalized referencing. “With AI, we are able to decipher what people are feeling, to detect the emotion behind the pain story,” says Frédéric Blaise, Chief Strategy Officer. Often, people who consult want to talk about their pain, express what they feel, but they are not given the time because the professionals are overwhelmed. Technology listens to them. »
PHOTO PROVIDED BY PAPERMINDS
Paperminds digital platform
The Paperminds client can even communicate verbally with the platform. “He is in conversation with our artificial intelligence, describes Frédéric Blaise. He is taken care of by our virtual assistant Ella, who engages in a conversation with him to detect how he is feeling. All his emotions are captured and make it possible to find a professional who will have an adapted healing plan. The information collected is transferred so that the physiotherapist is better prepared. And we continue the support after the meetings. »
At the same time, the co-founders believe that physiotherapists can manage their schedules better, avoid burnout and have a more profitable practice. “We don’t own anyone,” says Frédéric Blaise. But we offer professionals a complete ecosystem to operate their entire practice on Paperminds. It’s turnkey. »
innovation
Artificial intelligence adds an unprecedented layer to the patient-physiotherapist relationship. “The demand for physiotherapy services is growing exponentially, because the population is aging and young people want to prevent ailments,” explains Frédéric Blaise. Paperminds reorganizes the way the patient will connect with their physiotherapist and prepare their treatment plan until the pain is gone. »
Our platform makes it possible to measure the results, to give feedback to the physiotherapist. If one person can’t help you, another with a different approach can.
Zhen Chen, co-founder of Paperminds
Paperminds is currently in the testing phase with a few physiotherapists and patients in an “experiential” clinic. “There are several techniques in AI that make it possible to operate with much less information than before,” says Peter Chen, chief technology officer. Physiotherapists inject their clinical experience into the platform. It is an ongoing process. We already have enough data to train our first AI model. »
Paperminds retains 20% of transactions from physiotherapists recommended by the platform. “We do not make a diagnosis, specifies Frédéric Blaise. We gather the information, we process it, we bring it in a digested way with a clinical look towards the physio. »
The future
The co-founders hope to launch the consumer version of the platform in the fall. So far, nearly $100,000 has been pumped into its creation. Paperminds is going to round of financing to ensure the wider deployment of the service, possibly in North America. “As Toronto is more than in the cards, we need additional resources,” said Frédéric Blaise. Nevertheless, our goal is to quickly offer the service to people everywhere in Quebec. »
“The pandemic has allowed physiotherapists to innovate virtually,” continues Zhen Chen. Some are only virtual now. Physios can thus treat in remote areas. »
Within a year, the trio hopes that Paperminds will have 60 physiotherapists in Greater Montreal and between 10,000 and 15,000 clients. “We start with the physios, because I am one,” says Zhen Chen. But we see our technology being applied in related fields. »