370.MD&M Keynote: Are we innovating or iterating? $6.1B worth of advice from Ray Cohen and Tom West moderated by Omar M. Khateeb

In this episode, Omar Khateeb sits down with Raymond W. Cohen of Spiro Medical and Thomas A. West of Nalu Medical to unpack the real difference between innovation and iteration in medtech.Drawing from billions in exits and decades of experience, they explain why most companies fall into the trap of incremental thinking and why that approach is becoming harder to fund. The conversation highlights how venture capital behavior has shifted, why larger rounds are often necessary earlier, and how founders need to rethink how they approach building and scaling their companies.They also explore the importance of narrative, not just having a strong technology, but being able to clearly articulate the full journey from idea to commercialization, including reimbursement, manufacturing, and exit strategy.This episode challenges the way most founders think about growth and offers a clearer path to building something that actually stands out.Episode Breakdown:00:00 Innovation vs Iteration in MedTech00:01 Capital, Big Tech, and the Future of Healthcare00:03 The Real Challenges in MedTech Today00:05 Meet the Speakers and Keynote Setup00:10 Are We Truly Innovating?00:12 What Happens After Acquisition?00:14 Innovation vs Iteration in Startups00:15 What Venture Capital Really Wants00:18 Think Bigger and Raise Bigger00:22 Why Capital and Board Matter00:25 The Old MedTech Playbook Is Dead00:27 How M&A and VC Have Changed00:30 Strategic Investors and Real Examples00:32 Scaling with Enough Capital00:34 The Danger of Copycat Startups00:37 Why Founders Default to Iteration00:39 The Power of Narrative00:40 Manufacturing and Early Strategy00:42 What Investors Actually Look For00:43 Raising Big for Disruptive Ideas00:45 Is There Really a Capital Shortage?00:47 What Investors Bet On00:48 Building a Winning Story00:50 Reimbursement and Market Reality00:53 Why Founders Fail to Convince Investors00:55 Should You Go After Bigger Problems?00:57 Exit Strategy and Scaling Decisions00:59 IPO vs Acquisition01:00 Public Market Thinking01:02 Storytelling Drives Capital01:03 The Reality of Building in MedTech01:04 Big Tech vs MedTech01:06 Pharma and New Capital Sources01:08 Why Disruption Wins01:09 Owning the Full Business01:11 Building the Right Team01:12 Everything Comes Back to Capital01:13 No Money No Mission01:14 The Real Impact of MedTech01:15 Closing ThoughtsAre you a medtech CEO in need of some marketing help attracting investors, growing sales pipeline, and more? Go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠GrowMyMedtech.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to book time for a free analysis.Subscribe to our Youtube Channelhttps://www.youtube.com/@thestateofmedtechSubscribe to our LinkedIn Newsletterhttps://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/state-of-medtech-pod-7328860752952352770/Follow The State of MedTech onLinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/thestateofmedtech/Instagram ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/stateofmedtech/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TikTok ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@stateofmedtech⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠X ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/StateofMedTech⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/stateofmedtech/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow Omar M. Khateeb onLinkedIn ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/okhateeb/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/omar.m.khateeb/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TikTok ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@omarkhateebofficial⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠X ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/OmarMKhateeb⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/OmarMKhateeb/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠#medtech #healthcareinnovation #medicaldevices #healthtech #startupfunding