Laptis

Laptis is committed to uniting the fragmented and opaque substance use treatment landscape. The current landscape is incredibly confusing, disjointed, and overwhelmingly complex – there is no centralized platform to assist people’s search, so the next best option is a nightmarish combination of half-cooked google searches and dozens of frustrating phone calls that drag out long hold times and require the same information to be repeated over and over. As a result, treatment referral and coordination processes are exponentially less efficient and effective than they should be. This has broad implications, affecting tens of millions of individuals across the United States; contributing to systemic inefficiencies within healthcare and legal systems; and having visceral pain points for demand side professionals, clients, and treatment centers alike.

Scale:

Nearly 20 million Americans currently struggle with substance use disorders, and there are tens of millions more who have overcome this problem in the past. There is an immense need for effective treatment options and efficient referral processes.

The annual direct and indirect costs of addiction in the United States surpass $3 trillion, underscoring the economic impact of the crisis and the urgent need for efficient treatment referral systems.

This problem adversely impacts three distinct stakeholders: demand side professionals (social workers, lawyers, doctors), patients, and supply side entities (treatment centers).

Impact on Demand Side:

Legal, medical, and social service professionals, who are integral to the referral process for millions of Americans seeking treatment, face significant challenges due to the fragmented landscape. Many spend 2-6 hours per day searching for treatment options for their clients, making 10-20 phone calls just to ascertain crucial details and availability, which is time that could be better spent on direct patient care and other responsibilities.

This inefficiency not only has a profound opportunity cost but also contributes to the financial burden on healthcare and legal systems, making the need for a streamlined solution like Laptis evident.

Impact on Clients:

The lack of a streamlined referral process leads to clients often being placed in the first available treatment option, rather than the most suitable one. This misalignment between client needs and treatment programs can lead to poorer health outcomes and increased rates of relapse, exacerbating the personal and societal costs of substance use disorders.

Impact on Treatment Centers:

Treatment centers themselves face challenges in reaching their target clientele efficiently, with significant investments in marketing and outreach often not resulting in optimal patient matches and bed utilization. This inefficiency underscores the need for a platform like Laptis that can connect treatment centers with suitable clients more effectively.

By addressing these key challenges, Laptis aims to build a software platform that revolutionizes the way treatment referrals are made, improving outcomes for demand side professionals, clients, and treatment centers. Our platform aligns the incentives of all three stakeholders so ensure cooperation and continued growth through network effects. 

Laptis is building a transformative end-to-end platform designed to streamline the complex and fragmented process of connecting individuals with effective substance use treatment. Our platform serves as a centralized marketplace, facilitating efficient and informed treatment referrals by bridging the gap between lawyers, physicians, and social workers (demand side entities), clients seeking treatment, and substance use treatment centers (supply side entities).

How Laptis Works:

Centralized Platform: At its core, Laptis functions as a comprehensive platform connecting demand side entities to treatment centers in real time. Demand side professionals answer 10-15 questions about their clients, and the platform immediately presents them with multiple available and appropriate treatment options, allowing them to make informed choices about treatment options in minutes as opposed to hours or days. To inform their choices, users can easily access availability, intake requirements, treatment modalities, bespoke features, and user reviews. On the other side of the network, treatment centers can have efficient and targeted access towards inbound clients, enabling them to attract ideal clients much more effectively.

Recommendation Algorithm: Utilizing advanced algorithms and machine learning, Laptis recommends clients for certain treatment options that best fit their specific needs and circumstances. This matching process considers various factors, including the severity of the substance use disorder, location preferences, insurance coverage, and any co-occurring mental health conditions, ensuring a personalized approach to treatment referral.

User-Friendly Interface: Designed with accessibility in mind, the Laptis platform features an intuitive user interface that simplifies the process of searching for and connecting with treatment centers. Professionals can easily navigate the platform, compare different treatment options, and initiate the referral process – all within a few clicks.

Data Analytics and Insights: Beyond matching and referral, Laptis collects and analyzes data to offer insights into treatment outcomes, treatment center effectiveness, and systemic trends. This feature supports continuous improvement in the substance use treatment landscape, enabling stakeholders to make data-driven decisions and governments to improve policies.

In sum, Laptis is a technology platform that simplifies the process of finding and connecting with substance use treatment centers. By providing an accessible, data-driven, and user-friendly solution, Laptis saves time for demand side professionals, allows clients to make informed decisions, and enables more efficient treatment center customer acquisition – all of which improves substance use outcomes. 

Laptis serves three groups within the substance use treatment ecosystem: lawyers, physicians, and social workers (demand side entities); individuals seeking substance use disorder treatment (clients); and substance use treatment centers (supply side entities). Each of these groups faces unique and important challenges, all of which Laptis will address.

Demand Side Entities:

Demand side entities are critically positioned to assist individuals in need of substance use treatment and facilitate their connection to appropriate care. However, they currently face significant barriers due to the lack of a centralized, reliable source of information on treatment options. Many spend several hours a day navigating a disjointed system to find suitable treatment facilities for their clients. This not only detracts from their capacity to perform other vital duties, but it also delays the initiation of treatment for individuals in need.

Impact of Laptis: By providing a streamlined, easy-to-use platform with real-time information on treatment centers, Laptis significantly reduces the time and effort required for demand side entities to find appropriate options for their clients. This enables professionals to more efficiently allocate their resources, spend more time on direct client care, and improve overall outcomes for the populations they serve.

Clients:

Clients are often vulnerable individuals struggling to navigate the complex and opaque landscape of SUD treatment. The current system's lack of transparency and accessibility means that many clients are placed in the “first available bed” – which are often programs that are not appropriate for their specific needs, leading to suboptimal treatment outcomes and increased rates of relapse.

Impact of Laptis: For clients, Laptis offers a pathway to more informed choices about appropriate treatment. By facilitating matches based on individual needs, preferences, and circumstances, Laptis ensures that clients are more likely to engage with and complete treatment programs tailored to their unique situations. This personalized approach is expected to improve treatment outcomes and ultimately support more sustainable recoveries.

Substance Use Treatment Centers:

Treatment centers are essential providers within this ecosystem, yet they often struggle to find enough clients that are a good fit for their services. Current reliance on inefficient marketing strategies and high-friction referral processes makes it challenging for these centers to optimize their bed and resource capacity. More efficient and effective marketing processes could save millions of dollars per treatment center to be otherwise spent on care.

Impact of Laptis: Laptis addresses this issue by attracting a high density of senders and clients, thereby providing a highly accessible pool of potential customers for treatment centers to target. This not only enhances the centers' operational efficiency, but it also improves their capacity to deliver effective treatment, as programs can be more effectively tailored to the needs of their client base.

In sum, Laptis effectively serves the needs of demand side entities, clients, and treatment centers. Through its innovative platform, Laptis aims to transform the substance use treatment landscape into a more accessible, efficient, and effective system, leading to improved client health outcomes and increased operational capacities for senders and treatment centers.

Our team is deeply connected to the communities we aim to serve. Our shared commitment to improving the substance use treatment landscape is driven by personal experiences, professional encounters, and a collective mission to enact change.

Andrew Steen, our CEO, exemplifies the spirit of service and dedication that underpins Laptis' mission. His decision to become an Army Ranger was fueled by a profound commitment to serving his country and community in a meaningful way. Andrew’s experiences in high-stakes special operations environments sharpened his understanding of teamwork, leadership, and the complexities of navigating challenging situations.

However, it was also during his time in the Army that Andrew confronted the stark realities of inequality that pervade our society. Andrew saw that many drivers of inequality were exacerbated by substance use issues and inaccessibility of treatment – both within the veteran community and the United States more broadly. Witnessing the impacts of these disparities, Andrew became acutely aware of systemic contributors to cycles of poverty, incarceration, and addiction.

This realization sparked a determination in Andrew to address these contributors in a tangible way: by starting Laptis. Andrew’s experiences in the Army, coupled with his academic pursuits in law and business, equipped him with a unique skill set and perspective to disrupt the substance use treatment landscape in a prosocial way.

Andrew's journey from serving in the Army to spearheading Laptis is a testament to his belief that to truly serve one's country, one must address the underlying issues that affect its most vulnerable populations. His leadership at Laptis is driven by this ethos, ensuring that the platform not only serves as a technological solution but also as a means to advance equity and access in substance use treatment.

The remainder of our all-star team is a mix of technologists, healthcare practitioners, individuals with lived experience recovery, and aspiring legal professionals. This diversity ensures a wide range of perspectives and insights into the solution's design and implementation, making our platform more inclusive and effective.

One notable teammate, Tara Rivera, embodies our team's deep connection to the community. With her personal decades-long journey in recovery and her professional background in management at a leading substance use treatment center, Tara brings invaluable insights into both the needs of individuals seeking treatment and the operational realities of treatment centers. Her dual perspectives allow us to deeply understand the painful uphill battle that millions of clients face, while simultaneously building a business that can create and capture value from treatment centers.

From the outset, Laptis has been developed in close collaboration with our target communities. This includes ongoing dialogues with legal, medical, and social service professionals, as well as individuals in recovery and treatment centers. We have conducted extensive interviews, user tests, pilot programs, and feedback sessions to ensure that our platform addresses the specific needs and preferences of all stakeholders. Laptis is more than a platform: it is a community-driven solution, shaped by the very individuals it seeks to support.

We selected “pilot” because we launched our solution in the Boston legal community in late February. We are working closely with four law firms and engaging ten attorneys in total – this initial engagement has also sparked strong verbal interest from five additional firms. Our pilot is hands-on and analog, signifying our commitment to understanding the intricate dynamics and unknown unknowns of treatment referrals before automating the process (we want to fail fast and not fail at scale).

What We've Built and Tested:

To date, we've developed an intake system using a Google survey and built a comprehensive spreadsheet database of 160 Boston-area treatment centers. This database is organized by over 30 columns of data per treatment center, covering information such as stage, location, demographic qualifications, insurance requirements, and treatment philosophy. Our current process is as follows: (1) attorneys fill out the intake form on behalf of their clients; (2) Andrew manually cross-references their responses with the database to identify a list of best fit treatment centers; (3) Andrew calls each center directly to confirm availability and intake feasibility; (4) Andrew provides the attorneys with 2-5 suitable options from which they and their clients can choose.

This process, albeit unscalable, is instrumental in validating a core hypotheses: that we can deliver significant value to demand-side entities by connecting them with treatment centers. Affirming this hypothesis is a huge step to achieving sufficient demand-side client density for efficient treatment center customer acquisition (one of our ultimate monetization strategies). Having Andrew essentially become the algorithm at first is also a crucial step in learning, as it helps us test and iterate on the below categories:

Algorithm Development: We're gaining insights into the necessary steps to go from intake form data to suitable treatment centers. This is laying the groundwork for automating the matching and availability discovery processes in the future.

Intake Form Optimization: Feedback from our initial users is helping us refine the questions on our intake form, ensuring we gather all necessary information to facilitate effective matches.

Data Collection Strategy: We're identifying the most critical data points to track regarding clients and treatment centers, aiming to enhance our accuracy and utility.

Impact Measurement: The pilot is also guiding our thinking on how to measure impact, ensuring that we can quantify the value Laptis delivers to both individuals and the broader community.

Accomplishments So Far:

Our biggest accomplishments are successfully connecting six clients with treatment and saving hours per day for each client’s respective attorney. We have found treatment for every client that has passed through our system – a few have chosen on their own not to go – and not all of the ten attorneys who are participating in the pilot have yet had clients that are appropriate fits for our services. Our lawyer partners have expressed huge gratitude for our services thus far – both in terms of saving them time and helping their clients find treatment – and all partners want to continue using us for as long as possible. 

Our primary reason for applying to MIT Solve is to tap into its unparalleled network and foster relationships that can catalyze the growth and impact of Laptis. The Solve network – rich in diversity and expertise – can transform Laptis’ efforts along four major initiatives:

Access to partners and customers on all sides of the network: As we continue to execute our pilot, we aim to increase participation from both demand side and supply side entities over the coming months. Once we achieve sufficient demand side density, we will try to monetize our services with treatment centers, and B2B sales are best conducted through warm introductions or personal connections. The relationships fostered within the Solve community can open doors to new partnerships with law firms, hospitals, psychiatrists, and treatment centers. Even getting our feet in the door at a few of these entities will be crucial, as providing value to them will increase the industry virality of our platform.

Access to technical talent: Solve’s network will be the best possible vehicle through which to build our software development team. MIT is a world-leader in technical innovation, and collaboration with Solve network talent will accelerate the development of our digital platform and matching algorithm. In turn, this will allow us to seamlessly and intelligently transition from manual processes to a scalable, technology-driven solution.

Navigating the legal and regulatory environment: The substance use treatment landscape – and healthcare more broadly – are highly-regulated ecosystems. Many of Solve’s experts and alumni have navigated these ecosystems firsthand, meaning they can provide invaluable guidance as we do the same. This will help us ensure our solution complies with healthcare regulations and data privacy laws, thereby protecting our clients and enhancing our credibility.

Mentorship around team management and measuring impact: Laptis will not be successful if the internal team and culture are not well-managed. Solve’s impressive entrepreneurial alumni that have “walked the walk” – along with Solve’s capacity workshops and leadership coaching – will offer insights into effectively managing early-stage teams. Additionally, building robust mechanisms for measuring and evaluating our impact is crucial. Solve’s support in building an impact measurement practice could be instrumental in quantifying our contributions to improving treatment outcomes.

In sum, our decision to apply to Solve is primarily driven by the strategic importance of network and relationship-building in reaching a number of our current objectives. Of course, Solve’s $10,000 grant, along with access to additional funding opportunities, would also be huge tailwinds in our early efforts, though this is not a major reason for our application.

At its core, our solution reimagines the substance use treatment referral process, leveraging technology to streamline connections between and incentives among demand side entities and treatment centers. Laptis’ core innovations lie not just in our technology, but also in our strategies to address the inefficiencies and misalignment within the current substance use treatment landscape.

Our solution is immediately innovative in four main ways.

End-to-End Network: Laptis is building a technology platform that runs end-to-end from treatment centers to demand side entities using a similar approach to AirBnb, UberEats, and Unite Us. This is an unprecedented strategy within the substance use treatment landscape, as most previous attempts have built one-sided static informational pages that provide limited value. Because Laptis delivers substantial benefits to all network stakeholders, this end-to-end approach will benefit from network effects which will in turn catalyze unforeseen platform innovations and growth opportunities in the future.

Personalized Matching Algorithm: Unlike current referral systems that often rely on limited information and personal networks, Laptis is building a sophisticated algorithm designed to match clients with treatment options that best fit their specific needs, preferences, and circumstances. This personalized approach ensures a higher likelihood of treatment success, fundamentally changing how referrals are made and exponentially streamlining treatment centers’ ability to access clients.

Comprehensive Treatment Center Database: Our solution features an extensive database of treatment centers that are detailed across over 30 dimensions such as treatment philosophy, insurance acceptance, and demographic qualifications. This depth of information – accessible through an intuitive digital platform – is unprecedented in the field and enables clients to make an informed choice about treatment while reducing the time required for demand side entities to identify suitable options.

Real-Time Availability and Updates: By providing real-time information on treatment center availability (in exchange for the customer acquisition value the platform confers on treatment centers), Laptis addresses one of the major bottlenecks in the referral process. This capability not only accelerates referrals, it also increases the efficiency of treatment centers in filling available spots, optimizing resource utilization across the board.

Additionally, Laptis can catalyze broader positive innovations within the substance use disorder treatment ecosystem and beyond.

Facilitating Evidence-Based Practices: The data collected through our platform can contribute to research on treatment effectiveness, helping to promote evidence-based practices in substance use treatment. This can lead to more informed policy decisions and resource allocation in the long run.

Inspiring Technological Innovation: Generally speaking, the substance use treatment ecosystem does not operate at the cutting edge of technology. Laptis’ efforts to show how digital tools can solve complex problems will set a precedent for wider use of technology in addressing various challenges throughout many corners of substance use treatment.

In sum, Laptis’ innovative platform addresses a critical gap in the continuum of care and improves outcomes for all network stakeholders. This has the potential to fundamentally change the substance use treatment landscape by establishing a new standard for efficiency, transparency, and personalization. 

Laptis' theory of change is grounded in the hypothesis that streamlined and efficient referral processes for substance use treatment can significantly improve access to care, enhance treatment outcomes, and ultimately contribute to broader public health and criminal justice benefits. In other words, our immediate goal is to streamline access to effective substance use treatment, and we believe this will improve treatment outcomes while reducing burdens on healthcare and criminal justice systems.

Activities:

A.1: Design and refine a sophisticated matching algorithm that recommends optimal treatment centers to clients and demand side entities based on specific client needs and circumstances.

A.2: Compile and regularly update an extensive database of treatment centers, detailing over 30 data points per center, including treatment philosophies, insurance acceptance, demographic qualifications, and more.

A.3: Build an end-to-end software platform that provides up-to-date information on treatment center availability to facilitate timely referrals.

Outputs:

O.1 (Benefitting demand side entities and clients): Increased efficiency and effectiveness in the referral process, enabling professionals to quickly identify suitable treatment options for their clients (Linked to A.1, A.2, A.3).

O.2 (Benefitting treatment centers): Exponentially reduced customer acquisition costs for treatment centers because the value proposition in O.1 attracts a high number of demand side entities, thereby enabling treatment centers to access an unprecedented density of potential clients (Linked to A.1, A.3)

O.3 (Benefitting clients and treatment centers): Improved quality of match between clients and treatment centers, leading to higher engagement and retention rates in treatment programs (Linked to A.1).

Outcomes:

OC.1: Enhanced treatment outcomes for individuals with substance use disorders, including reduced relapse rates and improved overall health and well-being (Linked to O.2, O.3).

OC.2: Reduced costs associated with substance use disorders, through more efficient use of treatment resources and improved treatment outcomes (Linked to O.1, O.2, O.3).

OC.3: Reduced burden on demand side entities, including public defenders and hospitals, thereby increasing their ability to impact criminal justice and healthcare systems (Linked to O.1, O.3).

Evidence Supporting our Theory of Change:

Our pilot partners have indicated high satisfaction with the efficiency and accuracy of our matching process, suggesting an improvement in the referral process and a reduced burden on criminal justice and healthcare professionals (they can spend more time on their professional specialties) (Supports O.1, OC.3).

Scholarly data and customer research indicate that personalized, data-driven approaches to substance use treatment are associated with higher retention rates and better health outcomes, reinforcing the importance of our matching algorithm (Supports OC.1).

Assumptions:

Those seeking substance use treatment are hindered by the complexity of the current referral process to the point that it either prevents enrollment or results in poor matches.

Treatment centers are willing and able to provide real-time data on their availability and accept referrals from our platform in exchange for the substantial customer acquisition benefits that we will provide.

Feedback Loops:

Feedback from users (both demand side entities and treatment centers) on the platform's effectiveness can lead to continuous improvements in the algorithm and database accuracy (A.1 ➞ O.1 ➞ OC.2/3 ➞ A.1).

Laptis is committed to reducing addiction and transforming the substance use treatment landscape by improving the efficiency and efficacy of referrals. Our impact goals are designed to ensure that individuals struggling with substance use disorders (SUDs) have timely access to appropriate, high-quality treatment options. These goals align with several UN Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG 3 (Healthy Lives and Wellbeing, because of reductions in addiction and SUD), and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities, because our platform will benefit people from historically marginalized backgrounds). To track our progress, we employ numerous indicators that will signal the depth and breadth of our impact.

Impact Goals:

Reduce Addiction/Enhance Treatment Outcomes: Improve retention rates and success outcomes – and reduce relapse rates – for individuals referred through our platform.

Improve Access to SUD Treatment: Increase the number of individuals with SUDs who are matched with appropriate treatment options through our platform – especially those from historically marginalized or overlooked backgrounds.

Reduce Burdens on Demand Side Entities: Reduce the time required for demand side professionals to find suitable treatment options for their clients, so they can spend more energy on their professional specialties.

Reduce Healthcare Costs: Reduce both direct and indirect/downstream healthcare costs associated with SUDs by facilitating early and effective interventions in the form of connections to substance use treatment.

Reduce Healthcare Inequalities: Ensure that all treatment-seeking clients can find appropriate options, regardless of race, gender, sexuality, and/or socio-economic status.

To measure our progress towards these goals, we are tracking several key indicators either passively through our software or actively through follow-ups with clients and users. We will compare this data to controls (either in the form of the non-Laptis population, or our partners’ numbers for a given statistic before they used Laptis) so we can understand our marginal impact.

Number and Type of Individuals Matched with Treatment: This indicator tracks the total number of individuals – as well as demographic information about these individuals – who have been matched with treatment options through our platform, directly reflecting our goal of improving access to SUD treatment and reducing healthcare inequality.

Average Time to Find Suitable Treatment: By measuring the average time it takes for demand side professionals to find suitable treatment options using our platform, we can assess improvements in system efficiency and opportunity cost for their professional specialties.

Retention Rate in Treatment Programs: Measured as the percentage of individuals who remain in treatment for the recommended duration, this indicator helps assess the quality and appropriateness of the matches made by our platform, indicating enhanced treatment outcomes.

Relapse Rates for Individuals on Our Platform: By anonymously measuring the number of individuals that come through our platform multiple times, we can understand how the rates of relapse for people referred through Laptis compared to that of the overall population.

By rigorously tracking these indicators, Laptis aims not only to measure our progress toward achieving our impact goals but also to continuously refine and improve our solution to ensure it has a transformative impact on people’s lives.

The core technology behind Laptis is a cutting-edge platform that employs a variety of software, including artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and an extensive treatment center database to optimize substance use treatment referrals. By harnessing the power of these modern computational technologies, Laptis aims to streamline and personalize the connection between those seeking treatment and the most suitable care options available.

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning: At the forefront of our technology is an AI-driven matching algorithm. This algorithm is designed to intelligently process user data along with detailed treatment center information to identify the most appropriate care options. By leveraging ML techniques, the system continually learns and improves from each match it facilitates, enhancing the accuracy, efficacy, and personalization of recommendations over time. Furthermore, AI can be used to solve additional customer pain-points, such as rapid intake form completion (so demand side entities no longer have to fill out the same information multiple times on multiple forms) and client education (anything from inquiring about a specific treatment option to learning about how to de-stigmatize substance use disorder).

Comprehensive Treatment Center Database: Supporting the AI component is a robust database that catalogues hundreds of treatment centers, each detailed in more than 30 dimensions. This database serves as the backbone of our platform, ensuring that our AI algorithms have a rich repository of data to draw from for making informed matching decisions. Because no comparably exhaustive database currently publicly exists, this is a key differentiator of the Laptis platform.

Data Encryption and Security: Because Laptis will be transmitting sensitive information and PII, we are developing an end-to-end encryption system that protects user data from leaks or breaches.

Data Analysis: We can extract meaningful insights from the wealth of information collected through our platform to not only improve our matching algorithm, but also to diagnose trends across the treatment landscape. These trends can inform evidence-based practices and policy decisions not only for users of our platform, but also for policy decision-makers.

Software Architecture and User Experience Design: The software underpinning Laptis is developed with a keen focus on user experience (UX) and interface (UI) design, facilitating ease of use for both individuals seeking treatment and professionals. The platform's intuitive design allows users to effortlessly input their requirements, review their options, and proceed with informed decision-making, all within a few clicks.

In sum, Laptis' platform is a testament to how modern software and computational technologies can be utilized to make a substantial impact on the health and well-being of individuals dealing with substance use disorders.

Total: 7

Full Time: 1

Part Time: 4

Advisors: 2

Andrew (our Founder) has been working on Laptis for six months, dating back to November 2023. 

At Laptis, our dedication to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is deeply integrated into our organizational fabric, aligning with the principles upheld by MIT Solve and the broader MIT community. We recognize the immense value that a diverse team brings to our mission – enhancing innovation, ensuring a wide range of perspectives, and fostering a culture of respect and belonging. Our commitment to DEI is reflected in our team composition, our policies, and our daily practices, ensuring we minimize barriers to opportunity and create an inclusive environment for all team members.

Diversity in Our Team:

Echoing MIT Solve's commitment, we prioritize building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. More than two-thirds of our team members identify as coming from underrepresented groups, mirroring the diversity of the communities we serve. This includes individuals from various racial and ethnic backgrounds, gender identities, and those with diverse socioeconomic and geographical origins. Furthermore, we actively seek input from diverse stakeholders – especially recovery communities – to inform our programming and ensure our solutions are designed with and for communities that are often overlooked. Additionally, our recruitment and selection processes heavily weight diversity, aiming for our team to reflect the broader community we aim to serve.

Equitable Opportunities:

We're dedicated to providing equitable access to opportunities for professional growth and advancement within Laptis. This is achieved through transparent processes and ensuring that all team members have access to the resources and support they need to excel. Our policies and the mission of our company are designed with equity in mind, aiming to dismantle systemic barriers that have historically marginalized certain groups.

Inclusive Environment:

We strive to create an environment where every team member feels valued, heard, and respected. We facilitate open dialogues, enabling our team to share their experiences and perspectives, thereby fostering a deeper understanding and appreciation of diversity. This is especially true when our team members are representative of a particular community that we are trying to serve.

In alignment with MIT's and Solve's DEI commitments, Laptis is on a continuous journey to build a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills, thereby enhancing our capacity to address global challenges. We believe that by fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive team, we are better equipped to transform the substance use treatment landscape.

Laptis’ business model benefits all three network stakeholders: demand side entities, clients, and supply side entities (treatment centers). In turn, this model allows Laptis to capture ample value.

Key Resources:

Laptis Platform: Our end-to-end software platform facilitates the network effects flywheel by benefiting all three stakeholders.

Matching Algorithm: This enables personalized and streamlined matches between clients and treatment centers.

Comprehensive Treatment Center Database: This undergirds our platform and enhances the matching process.

Expert Team: We are a diverse and multidisciplinary team with relevant personal and professional experience.

Key Activities:

Efficiently and Effectively Matching Clients to Treatment: This is our core differentiator that attracts all stakeholders to Laptis.

Education: We are developing educational tools that help clients make more informed decisions about treatment.

Data Analysis: Our data insights can improve treatment practices and enable evidence-based approaches.

Type of Intervention:

Software Referral Platform: We create a technology-based solution that facilitates efficient and effective referrals.

Segments:

Demand Side Entities: lawyers, physicians, social workers, etc. (looking for treatment for their clients)

Clients: those in need of treatment

Supply Side Entities: treatment centers

Value Proposition:

For demand side entities, we save substantial time, allowing them to spend more energy on their professional specialties. For clients, we facilitate an informed treatment choice, improving treatment experiences and outcomes. For treatment centers, we offer access to a wider pool of potential clients, allowing them to acquire customers at unprecedented efficiency.

Partners + Key Stakeholders:

Boston-area demand side entities and treatment centers are crucial for our ability to access customers and test our solutions.

Clients: we cannot overlook their needs and leave them behind.

Insurers: If we can prove that we are saving downstream medical costs, insurers can become great partners for implementation and monetization.

Channels:

Personal/Professional Networks: Our teammates’ and advisors’ networks are crucial for early traction.

Outreach Programs: Engagement with professional communities through conferences, workshops, and webinars helps increase the top of the funnel and grow our brand.

Private Bar Association: A group of 3,000+ lawyers in Massachusetts that take private and public cases and often refer clients to treatment.

Cost Structure:

Personnel: Our team is and will continue to be our biggest financial cost – building a network takes a lot of coordination and testing, which requires people to execute.

Technology Development and Maintenance: To perform quickly and effectively, our software platform will require substantial investment.

Marketing and Outreach: Costs associated with promoting our platform to potential users and partners will likely grow over the next few years.

Surplus:

We do not expect to be profitable within the next twelve months, so revenue is reinvested into the three major cost structure topics.

Revenue:

Subscription Fees from Treatment Centers: Because we are facilitating efficient customer acquisition, a substantial subscription fee is justifiable.

Referral Fees for Insurers: Once we prove we are reducing downstream SUD costs, we can capture value from insurers when clients are successfully matched and admitted to treatment programs.

Premium Services: Advanced search and personalized support features will be available to high-budget clients and partners. 

Laptis’ financial plan is that of a self-sustaining revenue model through recurring treatment center subscriptions, insurer referral fees, and potential contracts with healthcare systems and government bodies.

Revenue Streams:

Subscriptions from Treatment Centers: Treatment centers will pay a subscription fee in exchange for being listed on our platform and gaining access to our services and clients – this is effectively a marketing expense for them (and they already pay millions of dollars for such expenses).

Insurer Referral Fees: We will capture a referral fee from insurers for each client successfully placed into a treatment program through our platform. To ensure mission alignment, a small fee will be captured after a successful client placement, and a larger fee will be captured after successful program completion.

Premium Services for Demand Side Entities: While basic access to the platform is free for demand side entities, we will offer premium services such as enhanced search capabilities, additional client management tools, and dedicated support to both demand and supply side partners.

Government and Healthcare Contracts: We are exploring opportunities to contract directly with government bodies and healthcare systems that could benefit from streamlined access to treatment centers, reducing operational burdens and improving patient outcomes.

Evidence of Financial Success:

While Laptis has not yet captured revenue or grant money, there are still strong signs of promise for receiving income before the end of the summer.

For one, many treatment centers have said they are willing to pay if we can get them the right mix of clients – as we continue to execute our pilot, we aim to charge treatment centers before September. However, aside from their words, the strongest evidence for their willingness to pay is in their actions: most treatment centers spend millions of dollars per year on marketing and referral resources because finding appropriate customers is difficult. A Laptis subscription would allow them to acquire customers far more efficiently than they currently do, and their willingness to pay for this is high based on current practices.

Additionally, insurers have also shown evidence of a willingness to pay for services that facilitate early interventions if the data is there. Companies like Upside that capture value from insurers for providing stable housing to at-risk populations are proof of this model, and Laptis has a sufficiently similar value proposition to insurers as Upside.

Finally, Laptis qualifies for multiple NIAAA and NiDA SBIRs and STTRs, and we will apply for these in the coming weeks and months. We do not plan on raising equity capital for at least another 12 months – the reason for this is twofold: for one, we want to preserve ownership and mission alignment for as long as possible while we test early features. Second, we want to raise dilutive capital from a position of strength. We recognize the power and benefit that strong investment partners can have, and we want to explore such partnerships from as solid of a position as possible; customer revenue and grant money would put us there.