Love Is A Habit ยท background brief
How AEGIS makes money, and where we might fit
A plain-English walk through AEGIS.net's business, the bet Dennis described, and what's worth confirming before anyone commits.
The short version. AEGIS gets paid to prove that other people's health software works. Every time a new rule or standard says "your system has to do this," hospitals, insurers and software makers need someone to test them and vouch for them. That's AEGIS's business. If Love Is A Habit's care console helped shape a new way of doing things, AEGIS would want to be the company that writes the tests for it, because everyone who adopts it later would need those tests.
1. Where their money comes from today
From what AEGIS publishes about itself, there are four main streams.
Touchstone
An online testing platform, running since 2015. Developers and health organisations pay for access so they can check that their system shares records correctly under FHIR, the national format for health data.
Getting ready to pass
A fixed project: assess a company's system, help them fix what fails, then hand over an independent report saying they're ready for certification.
Staying compliant
A running service: repeat testing as federal rules change, dashboards with regular updates, and a file of evidence the client can show if they're ever audited. This is the steady, recurring kind of income.
Independent checking
They hold a federal purchasing contract (GSA) and do independent reviews on big projects, confirming the thing built actually does what was promised. They also sell training.
2. What really drives it: new rules
AEGIS grows when the rules change. When the federal government tells insurers they must share records and handle prior approvals electronically by January 2027, every insurer affected suddenly needs to prove they can. AEGIS already builds tests for exactly that.
So their best customers aren't people who want testing. They're people who have to be tested. A new standard that lots of organisations are expected to meet is, for a testing company, a new market.
3. The bet, as Dennis described it
To confirm with Dennis. This section is our understanding, not AEGIS's words.
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The care console grows up
It becomes more like a super-powered records system and relationship manager in one: it keeps data in sync, and the quality of care keeps rising because nothing gets lost between people.
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Love Is A Habit sets a new standard
The way the console connects care becomes a pattern other systems could follow, a better mousetrap.
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AEGIS becomes the one who checks it
They write the tests that say "this system meets the standard." Their contribution now, given freely to the build, puts them at the front of the line.
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It scales to hospitals
Once it's proven, bigger organisations want in. Every one of them needs testing, readiness work and ongoing checks. That's where the large, long-term contracts would come from.
4. How the money would actually flow
If the bet works, it's worth being clear about who pays whom, because Love Is A Habit is a nonprofit and that matters.
- Now: AEGIS gives time and expertise to the build. No money changes hands, but they learn the system from the inside and help shape it.
- Next: AEGIS turns what they learned into a set of tests they own and can sell, likely through Touchstone.
- Later: Other software makers and hospitals who want to meet the standard pay AEGIS to test them, get them ready, and keep them passing.
- For Love Is A Habit: the win is the mission, better connected care, plus credibility from a serious testing partner. Whether any revenue or support comes back to us is still to be agreed.
5. The honest parts
Check exactly what they'd verify. AEGIS's public track record is testing that systems share records correctly and meet federal data-sharing rules. That's real and valuable. It's worth asking Dennis precisely which checks AEGIS would put their name behind for the console, so everyone means the same thing.
A standard is only a standard once others adopt it. Health data standards usually take years and go through industry groups like HL7. The console being great is step one; other organisations choosing to follow it is what creates AEGIS's market.
Hospitals are a long way off. "Massive clients" is the right horizon to aim at, but it's the end of a long road, not the next step. The smaller wins along the way are what make it believable.
Keep it good for everyone. The people the console serves are the reason for all of this. A standard that stays open, that anyone can build to, serves them best, and it's also what gives AEGIS the biggest market. Those two interests line up, which is a good sign.
6. Questions to bring to Dennis
What exactly would AEGIS contribute to the build?
Hours, people, testing tools, advice? Over what time frame?
What would AEGIS test and vouch for?
Record sharing under FHIR, federal data-sharing rules, something else? Get the list in writing.
Who owns the standard and the tests?
Does the pattern stay open for anyone to use? Does AEGIS own the test suite they build from it?
What does Love Is A Habit get back?
Credit, support, a share of anything, or simply better tools for the mission? All are fine, as long as it's clear.
What does "scalable for hospitals" mean to them?
Which milestones would tell both sides the console is ready for bigger organisations?
The best partnerships are the ones where serving people well is also what makes everyone else succeed.