EnlitenAI: Turning Loss Into Purpose

The Moment Inspiration Struck

Can you walk us through the moment you decided to turn your personal story into a startup?

Himanshu: In 2021, I lost my son to epilepsy—a life-changing moment that transformed grief into purpose. I made a personal commitment to create solutions that could ease the burden for millions of families facing intractable seizures and, ultimately, save lives. Drawing on my professional background in computational sciences and numerical methods, I realized I could bring a fresh lens to a space where technology had lagged behind patient need.

That’s how EnlitenAI was born—at the intersection of lived experience and deep technical expertise. Unlike many digital health tools that focus narrowly on detection, our platform is designed around the daily realities of patients and caregivers, helping personalize treatment and preempt crises. EnlitenAI is more than a company: it’s a mission-driven effort fueled by love, science, and a vision of truly patient-centered neurology care. EnlitenAI is truly a story of love and passion!

From Idea to Launch

What were some of the first steps you took to move from concept to actually launching EnlitenAI?

Himanshu: While the idea for EnlitenAI was born out of lived experience, I knew that a strong concept wasn’t enough—we needed validation within real clinical workflows. The first step was building a leadership team and an advisory council of experts in areas where I had limited knowledge, including FDA regulatory pathways, EMR integration, reimbursement, and clinical decision support.

I also immersed myself in accelerator programs such as Innosphere, LifeX/Jumpstart, the Epilepsy Foundation, and IIT Startups. These platforms gave us access to mentors, clinicians, and investors who helped us sharpen our product roadmap, design clinically relevant studies, and prioritize features. Those early steps laid the foundation for translating a deeply personal mission into a credible, clinically aligned company.

Overcoming the Hardest Moments

Founding a company rooted in personal loss must have been both motivating and difficult. What helped you push through the hardest moments?

Himanshu: Founding EnlitenAI was born out of heartbreak, but also out of a deep conviction. Losing our son was devastating, yet it gave me an unwavering commitment to confront the challenges of epilepsy head-on. My family’s support was invaluable, but what kept me going was the mission itself—the belief that no family should go through what we did.

Having lived through the unpredictability of seizures and the frustration of trial-and-error treatments, I knew exactly which gaps had to be addressed. That clarity, combined with a team that shares the same conviction, has helped me push through the hardest moments and stay focused on building a solution that can change lives.

Building Trust with Stakeholders

Were there any early challenges in building trust with clinicians, patients, or investors, and how did you overcome them?

Himanshu: Our earliest validation came from patients and caregivers, who immediately recognized the value of our approach and helped refine the user experience. Clinicians were also quick to support us, and within months leading neurologists from UCSF, UCHealth, Baylor, CEPN, UC Davis, and the University of New Mexico joined our advisory network.

With investors, the challenge was less skepticism and more unfamiliarity with the epilepsy market, which has long been underfunded. That is why we focused on strong clinical collaborations and generating real-world data. The momentum we have built with patients and top neurologists puts us in a strong position to close this gap and highlight one of the most overlooked opportunities in neurology and digital health.

The Role of the Startup Community

How has the Bay Area or broader startup community supported you on this journey?

Himanshu: The Bay Area and Sacramento startup ecosystems have been the launchpad for EnlitenAI’s growth. Through the IIT Startups Accelerator, we accessed seasoned angels and entrepreneurs who sharpened our fundraising and go-to-market strategy. In Northern California, AngelCon, Growth Factory, and other investor networks have expanded our reach and opened critical doors.

We were honored to win 2nd Prize at Pitch Elk Grove, hosted by the City of Elk Grove and organized by StartupSac, marking a milestone that aligns with our strategy to launch EnlitenAI’s first commercial product in Sacramento. This region is uniquely suited as our proving ground—combining a strong clinical ecosystem with community-driven innovation.

Clinically, we are already working with UC Davis and CEPN (Rocklin), while also engaging with Sutter Health, Dignity Health, and Kaiser. The support we’ve received here is more than local—it is helping us validate and refine our model in a real-world healthcare setting. This positions Sacramento and the Bay Area as the springboard for scaling EnlitenAI’s impact nationwide.

The Value of Mentorship and Advisors

Have mentors, advisors, or programs played an important role in helping you grow EnlitenAI?

Himanshu: Absolutely. Building a healthcare company in neurology, especially epilepsy, requires a cross-functional network of advisors and mentors, and EnlitenAI has been fortunate to draw on some of the very best.

Our Neurologist Advisory team has been central in defining product features, ensuring integration into clinical workflows, and guiding clinical studies for regulatory and payer adoption. On the business and regulatory side, we have relied on QNova Life Sciences, the Epilepsy Foundation, Danny Did Foundation, Innosphere Ventures, and AngelCon to sharpen our strategy and accelerate product-market fit.

Mentorship from accelerator programs such as Innosphere, LifeX/Jumpstart, and IIT Startups refined our value proposition and strengthened our business model, while the Epilepsy Foundation’s Accelerator and Danny Did Foundation gave us a platform to build device partnerships. Our induction into the Epilepsy Foundation’s dtRRE panel also provided unparalleled visibility in reimbursement and commercialization.

This ecosystem of mentors and advisors remains one of our strongest assets in shaping both clinical impact and commercial success.

Evolution of the Vision

How has your vision for EnlitenAI evolved since the beginning, and what excites you most about where it is headed?

Himanshu: Our vision began with a focus on epilepsy and seizure management, rooted in the daily challenges patients and caregivers face. Over time, we realized our approach of combining device-agnostic telemetry with AI decision support can extend to other neurobehavioral disorders, including autism, depression, anxiety, and PTSD.

Conversations with UC Davis Neurology have shown the value of integrating mental health monitoring alongside seizure detection, creating a more holistic view of patient well-being. EnlitenAI is built to be scalable and flexible, addressing conditions where symptoms are episodic and treatment decisions are subjective.

What excites me most is the opportunity to create patient-centered, data-driven pathways that improve outcomes, reduce hospitalizations, and provide actionable insights across a wide range of neurological and neurobehavioral 

conditions.

Advice for Mission-Driven Founders

What advice would you share with other founders who want to transform a deeply personal experience into a mission-driven startup?

Himanshu: My advice to mission-driven founders is to combine passion with discipline. Personal experience drives purpose, but building a scalable business requires expert guidance and attention to regulatory, clinical, and commercial realities. Stay close to the problem, but balance empathy with rigorous execution—this is how you create both meaningful impact and a viable, investable company.

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