Former doctor quit his job to create an AI tool, and his company is now worth $465M. What aspiring entrepreneurs can learn from his experience

Luckily for Kelly, his AI bet paid off. According to the most recent funding rounds, Kelly’s company, Heidi, has a valuation of $465 million.

As an AI scribe, Heidi’s system helps medical providers organize their days and transcribe notes on the spot to reduce many necessary but tedious tasks. The idea behind Heidi came from Kelly’s own frustration with the limited time in his daily practice.

When explaining why he decided to give Heidi his full attention, Kelly told CNBC, “[I thought] I’ll regret it forever if I don’t take this chance. How many surgical trainees are good enough in math and have had business experience and can build this product? I think not many.”

Although Kelly focused on medicine during his studies at the University of Melbourne, he also had a passion for math and computer science. Plus, he had previous experience building the AI system Oscar, which helped thousands of students practice interacting with a lifelike medical interviewer.

“Maybe it was hubris,” Kelly admitted, “but I thought if anyone can start this company, it would be me, and let’s try and see what happens.”

Is quitting the smart career move?

Many physicians in the U.S. can relate to Kelly’s struggles in providing quality care to patients while taking care of their own mental and physical health. An analysis from Stanford found that approximately 45% of physicians reported at least one symptom of burnout between 2023 and 2024 (2).

Add in the recent headlines related to AI startups raising millions or billions (3), and it makes sense that some of these burned-out professionals would think about making a similarly bold career move. While Heidi shows that it’s possible to be successful as a tech entrepreneur, statistics suggest this kind of success is the exception rather than the rule.

On average, 70% of new businesses fail within a few years, and this figure is even higher in the AI sector, according to Exploding Topics (4). Data from marketing agency Digital Silk shows that 90% of AI startups fail, and just 5% of generative AI companies generate any positive return on investment for their clients (5).

So, instead of increasing financial independence and creating a worry-free life, becoming an entrepreneur is more likely to increase stress. Many surveys suggest entrepreneurs have burnout rates similar to those of other professions, and these worries are compounded by extra financial burdens (6).

Again, that doesn’t mean taking a leap can’t be the right move, but Kelly’s story shows how crucial it is to have transferable skills if someone wants to experiment with new financial paths. Since Kelly already had knowledge of computer science and experience building a real-world AI product, he was in a stronger position when entering the competitive AI space.

Any burned-out employees who are seriously considering becoming an entrepreneur need to recognize that it takes just as much work, if not more, to leave a predictable profession. The harsh reality is that success with a new business is rare and not easily replicable.

Taking a practical pause before a permanent decision

So, if becoming an AI entrepreneur isn’t realistic for some of today's burnt-out professionals, is everyone just stuck in the never-ending stress cycle?

Not necessarily.

Entrepreneurship isn’t the be-all, end-all strategy to addressing burnout, nor is it the most practical option. But one lesson everyone can take from Kelly’s story is to leverage transferable skills when searching for new opportunities.