Podcast: Demand Better from Wearable Technology feat. Marco Benitez
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Guest Overview
• Marco Benitez: CEO and co-founder of ROOK; former Tae Kwon Do national champion; biomedical engineer with experience at Roche and Novartis; serial entrepreneur with a passion for using technology to make healthcare data more accessible and actionable.
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Episode Highlights & Key Points
• The Problem with Wearable Technology: Marco discusses the current fragmentation in the wearable tech industry—there are hundreds of devices, each with their own data formats and APIs, making it tough for healthcare, wellness, and insurance companies to get a true picture of a person’s health.
• ROOK’s Mission: The company was founded to solve this exact problem. ROOK offers a unified API that connects data from over 400 wearable devices and health apps, allowing companies to pull standardized health metrics and deliver more personalized, preventive care.
• Marco’s Personal Journey: From growing up in Mexico to winning national Tae Kwon Do championships, Marco shares how discipline, resilience, and curiosity guided him into biomedical engineering and eventually to high-profile roles in pharma—where he saw the huge potential (and gaping holes) in health data integration.
• Bridging the Gap: From Data to Action: Marco explains that raw data from devices is only valuable if it’s accurate, standardized, and easily accessible. ROOK’s platform makes it easy for companies to integrate wearable data into their apps, research, or wellness programs without having to build separate integrations for each device.
• Impact on Healthcare and Insurance: With better, real-time health data, organizations can validate and predict user behavior, improve engagement, and help people take more meaningful action toward their health goals.
• Data Privacy and Security: Marco emphasizes that ROOK is built to the highest standards of privacy and reliability, ensuring sensitive health information is protected while still being usable for better care and outcomes.
• Vision for the Future: Marco sees wearable data and unified APIs as key to unlocking a world where healthcare is more predictive, personalized, and preventive. He believes ROOK’s approach will drive the industry toward more human-centered, data-driven wellness solutions.
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Notable Quotes & Insights
• “Health data has the power to improve lives—but only if it’s accurate, standardized, and accessible.”
• Marco’s journey is as much about personal growth and perseverance as it is about technology: “Discipline and resilience are what translate across sports, engineering, and entrepreneurship.”
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Why ROOK Matters
• ROOK is setting new standards by making health data integration seamless, helping companies and individuals benefit from the full power of wearable technology.
• The platform is already helping clients in healthcare, wellness, and insurance make smarter, more impactful decisions with real-time health metrics.
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Useful Links
• Learn more about ROOK: https://www.tryrook.io/
• Connect with Marco Benitez on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcobzg/
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