Expanding Access to High-Quality, Continuous Care
UpDoc's mission is to usher in a new era of healthcare where physicians and AI work side by side, extending the reach of evidence-based care so patients receive timely, high-quality intervention when it matters most.
We believe AI's role in healthcare is not to replace clinicians, but to amplify their impact.
Leadership
Physicians and Technologists, United by the Same Problem
Sharif Vakili, MD, MBA, MS
Chief Executive Officer
Sharif is a serial healthcare entrepreneur, former venture capitalist, and practicing primary care physician. He previously served as a venture capitalist at Polaris Partners, supporting and serving on the boards of biotechnology and health services companies.
He currently practices at Stanford, where he is a Clinical Assistant Professor, and completed his medical training at Stanford. Sharif holds an MD from Johns Hopkins, an MBA from Harvard Business School, and an MS and BS in Biology from Yale.
Ashwin Nayak, MD, MS
Chief Technology Officer
Ashwin is a software engineer with deep expertise in machine learning and conversational AI, and a practicing hospital medicine physician. He is a leading AI researcher with publications in major academic journals including JAMA Internal Medicine and Nature Digital Medicine.
Ashwin completed his internal medicine residency at Stanford where he currently practices as a Clinical Assistant Professor. He holds an MD from the University of Illinois College of Medicine and an MS in Clinical Informatics Management from Stanford.
Our Story
How It Started
UpDoc was founded by physicians who experienced firsthand the growing disconnect between what medicine knows how to do and what the healthcare system is actually able to deliver.
Sharif and Ashwin first met in medical training nearly a decade ago, where they quickly recognized that the current healthcare system was letting patients fall through the cracks. The problem wasn't a lack of caring physicians or clinical knowledge, but that there simply weren't enough providers and staff to be there at all times to support patients between visits.
Built on the Frontlines of Care
Sharif and Ashwin envisioned that a thoughtfully designed, physician-supervised AI system could close this gap — extending clinicians' reach while preserving the doctor–patient relationship.
They knew in order to develop a solution that truly works, it needed to be practical and grounded in clinical reality to:
- Serve patients with chronic conditions who need help the most.
- Meet doctors where they are with seamless EHR integrated workflows that become a natural part of their day, not something separate, unmonitored, and forgotten.
- Provide high quality, evidenced-based medicine that follows the latest guideline-based care and is subject to regulatory clearance.
These convictions gave rise to UpDoc.
Our Principles
What Guides Our Work
Patients First
Every design decision starts with serving patients first.
Quality Without Compromise
We build systems that prioritize safety, transparency, and clinical integrity.
Simplicity That Scales
Our platform meets patients where they are through intuitive calls and messaging.
Physician-Led by Design
Built by clinicians, for clinicians with deep respect for real-world workflows and constraints.
Rigor Over Hype
We focus on what works. Clinical impact matters more than buzzwords.
Accountability at Every Level
From engineering to clinical operations to leadership, responsibility is built into how we operate.
Let's move the needle in healthcare
Let's move the needle in healthcare
Whether you're a care provider, health plan, employer, or part of a healthcare system, we'd love to hear from you.
Contact us