Shut down (November 2024) after burning through ~$650M; all locations closed
The rise & fall
6 moments Β· 2016β2024
The key moments, with employee sentiment along the way.
2016
π±
2016
Founded by ex-Google and Uber executives
The pitch: rebuild the doctor's office as a tech product.
TechCrunch
2023
π
2023
The peak: a $1B Series E to bet it all on CarePods$1B
Roughly $650M raised in total; the future is a self-service, AI-powered doctor's office in a mall kiosk.
TechCrunch
2024
2024
The kiosks nobody visits
CarePods draw little interest from shoppers, and the mall bet doesn't pay.
Fierce Healthcare
2022β24
π¬
From the inside Β· Glassdoor reviews, 2022β24
Glassdoor reviews caught the pitch-versus-reality gap: mall staff steering shoppers toward clinics with barely any foot traffic, scribes working years as $17-an-hour contractors. Staff said the end came as a late-night email β roughly 200 people locked out, weeks before the holidays.
Nov 2024
πͺ¦
Nov 2024
Abrupt shutdown β joins the Unitard Club π
Every location closes at once, ~$650M burned β one year after the $1B round.
Fierce Healthcare
$1Bof peak value erased Β· 8 years
π¬ entries paraphrase anonymous, unverified reviews posted publicly on Glassdoor β; dated facts carry their source.
How it happened
Forward was a tech-enabled primary-care startup from ex-Google and Uber executives that raised about $650M, hit a $1B valuation in 2023, and bet heavily on CarePods β self-service AI kiosks meant to screen patients in malls. The kiosks drew little interest, and in November 2024 the company abruptly shut down. By staff accounts the end came as a late-night Tuesday email β roughly 200 people locked out without warning, weeks before the holidays.
Source: Fierce Healthcare / TechStartups / eMarketer (tech-enabled primary-care startup; raised ~$650M VC and hit a ~$1B valuation in a 2023 Series E; CarePods AI kiosks flopped; abruptly shut all clinics and ceased operations Nov 2024)
