Founded in Portugal, SWORD Health is another digital musculoskeletal health unicorn (companies of $1Bn valuation or more) competing with the likes of Hinge Health. This makes sense - there's room in the space for multiple large players, considering the outsized impact of musculoskeletal disorders on national healthcare spending. To see just how much money there is to be made in the space, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) estimates that low back and neck pain alone accounted for a whopping $134.5B in healthcare expenditures in the US in 2016...with the number 2 spot going to other musculoskeletal disorders at a paltry $130B. The bottom line: surgeries are costly, pain is a huge factor that can be addressed through more conservative means, and physical therapy services are a huge opportunity to address both of these pain points. (October 2023)