Douglas Brown and Kentucky Morrow on Driving Innovation in Dentistry

In this episode of The Dental Economist Show, host CRO Mike Huffaker of Planet DDS sits down with Douglas Brown, the co-founder and managing partner of Dental Innovation Alliance (DIA), and Kentucky Morrow, the principal of investments at DIA, to discuss innovation in dentistry. Join them as they discuss the growth and potential of the dental industry, the impact of technology on dental businesses, and their unique investment approach. 

Join them as they discuss: 

• Investing in and advising early-stage dental technology companies
• The role of technology in driving innovation
• The value of hands-on experience in dental businesses 
• AI in dentistry 
• And much more!

About Our Guests

Douglas Brown is the co-founder and managing partner at Dental Innovation Alliance (DIA), a strategic investment firm focused on supporting early-stage dental and health technology companies. In the 1990s, Douglas organized several dental industry leaders into a group practice study group, which led to the formation of the Association of Dental Support Organizations (ADSO). He has held leadership positions within ADSO, including president and chair of the Government Affairs Committee. He currently serves on ADSO’s executive committee and other key committees. 

Kentucky Morrow is the principal of investments at DIA. He is also a board member of several organizations and companies, including Alta Smiles, Cloud Dentistry, and Milk & Bull.

Episode Highlights

Find out how patient-centered innovation is shaping the next wave of dental care with key points highlighted in this episode: 

Areas of dental investment

Kentucky Morrow explains that DIA’s investment in the dental sector centers on three key areas: expanding access to care, improving care outcomes, or improving practice-level efficiency. DIA considers a wide range of investments, including software companies, device companies, and even consumer companies if there is an angle where they can be incorporated into the dental practice. Kentucky says that they “tend to shy away from” dental support organizations, clinics, and dental laboratories. Instead, they look for technologies and innovations that can be used by clinicians and practices to improve their operations and care outcomes. 

AI and dental technology

Morrow says that, while AI is a significant trend within the dental technology space, it is not always necessary. For instance, DIA has invested in a company called Uptime Health, which does equipment maintenance and compliance tracking. Ultimately, what DIA looks for when they evaluate companies is their value—what problems they are solving. Kentucky stresses that incorporating AI is useless if it’s just for the sake of it. He adds that DIA have invested in AI technologies, but emphasizes that it is not a requirement for investment. 

The investment “sweet spot”

Douglas Brown estimates that 90% of their investments are focused on the seed to Series A stages since this “sweet spot” is where DIA feels they can add most value. However, they are also open to investing in a small number of “really early stage companies.” Douglas notes that these companies would still be beyond a concept and into some development. What’s more, while their main focus is on early stage investments, Douglas says they will occasionally invest in growth-stage companies if there are favorable terms, a growth rate that will continue to go into the future, or opportunities to leverage their network to add value. 

Revenue cycle management technologies

Brown says that DIA is prioritizing finding new revenue cycle management (RCM) technologies. This is due to its growing complexity involved with revenue cycle management, with the variety of insurance plans, the difficulty in getting insurance verified, and getting claims processed and money collected. Although there have been some advances, Douglas says that the whole chain of revenue cycle management has yet to be tackled. However, he still believes a comprehensive solution will emerge.