Albert Santalo


Albert Santalo is an American computer scientist and entrepreneur. He is the founder of Avisena, CareCloud, 8base, Archie Labs, and Archie.com, companies in healthcare technology and software development. His companies have collectively raised over $200 million in venture capital.
Forbes profiled Santalo as a serial entrepreneur with a distinctive approach of launching ventures during economic downturns and growing companies through disciplined capital deployment rather than aggressive venture funding, a model that diverges from typical Silicon Valley practice. In interviews, he has described bootstrapping early-stage companies to preserve ownership and focus on product development before pursuing institutional funding.

Early life and education

Santalo was born in Baltimore, Maryland, and moved to Miami, Florida, at age 11. He is the son of Cuban exiles. He graduated from Christopher Columbus High School in Miami, studied computer engineering at the University of Miami, and completed an MBA at Florida International University.
In 2006, Santalo was inducted into FIU's Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame.

Career

Santalo began his career as a software engineer at Financial Processors, Inc., working on data processing systems for banks and credit unions. After completing his MBA, he joined Answerthink in 1997, a management consulting firm founded by former KPMG partners. Answerthink went public on NASDAQ in 1998. He served as a director in the IT Transformation and Strategy practice.
Santalo's ventures have focused on healthcare administration, revenue cycle management, and software development. He has remained based in Miami throughout his career; in 2017, the Miami-Dade Beacon Council cited CareCloud as an example of the region's tech ecosystem growth.
Santalo is a contributor to Entrepreneur magazine.

Companies

Avisena (2001–2008)

In 2001, Santalo co-founded Avisena, a revenue cycle management company for physician practices. The company operated as a software as a service platform.
Santalo is a named inventor on a U.S. patent for the company's accounts receivable management methodology. Avisena grew to $16 million in revenue by 2008. Santalo departed that year; the company was later acquired.

CareCloud (2009–2016)

In 2009, Santalo founded CareCloud, a cloud-based healthcare technology company providing practice management and electronic health records software to medical practices. The company launched the same year as the HITECH Act, which created federal incentives for physicians to adopt electronic health records.
CareCloud raised more than $55 million in venture funding during Santalo's tenure as CEO. Initial angel investment of approximately $7.3 million in 2009–2010 was followed by a $20.1 million Series A round led by Intel Capital and Norwest Venture Partners in 2011, and a $29 million Series B round led by Tenaya Capital in 2013.
In 2010, the company was a co-winner of IBM SmartCamp Silicon Valley. In 2013, The Boston Globe published two staff-written articles profiling Santalo and CareCloud's growth, including the company's expansion to Boston and a $20 million funding round.
CareCloud was ranked #127 on the Inc. 500 list of fastest-growing private companies in 2014. By 2014, the company served approximately 5,000 physicians and managed over $3 billion in annualized accounts receivables. At its peak, CareCloud employed more than 300 people.
In April 2012, Santalo was invited to the White House Rose Garden to stand behind President Barack Obama during the signing of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act and later appeared on PBS NewsHour with Jeffrey Brown, debating Professor John C. Coffee Jr. of Columbia Law School on the legislation's impact on startups and capital formation. In April 2013, Santalo appeared on Fox Business to discuss cloud-based healthcare technology. In October 2013, he appeared on CNBC to discuss healthcare technology trends following the launch of the Affordable Care Act.
In 2015, Ken Comee, an investor and board member, was installed as CEO, while Santalo remained as board chairman and chief strategy officer. Santalo departed the company's management and board in 2016. By that time, the Miami-Dade Beacon Council described CareCloud as "a mainstay of the Miami economy with hundreds of employees." The company was acquired by MTBC in 2020 for at least $36 million; MTBC subsequently adopted the CareCloud name, becoming CareCloud, Inc., after raising a total of $153.4 million in venture financing over its lifetime.

8base (2017–present)

In 2017, Santalo founded 8base, a low-code development platform for building cloud-based software applications. The platform, designed for professional developers rather than business users, was initially built to connect customers with software developers worldwide.
The company is headquartered in Coral Gables, Florida.
In April 2022, 8base completed a $10.6 million Series A funding round led by Foundry Group, with participation from MongoDB Ventures and Techstars, bringing total funding to $15.3 million. Clients have included IBM Global Services and NATO.
In 2019, 8base was named Startup of the Year at the Startup Grind Global Conference and was selected for the Techstars Austin accelerator program. In 2023, Business Insider listed 8base among "43 startups to bet your career on."
The company is unrelated to the 8Base ransomware group.

Archie Labs (2024–present)

In 2024, Santalo founded Archie Labs, a company focused on AI-assisted software development. The company developed Archie, an AI platform that uses generative AI to convert product ideas into specifications and designs. The Archie platform was named a Top AI & Data Product at the 2024 Product Awards, presented by Products That Count.
In 2025, Santalo founded Archie.com, Inc. as a separate entity offering an AI-based software development platform.

Awards and recognition

  • FIU Charles E. Perry Visionary Award
  • FIU Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame inductee
  • Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce Technology Entrepreneur of the Year
  • IBM SmartCamp Silicon Valley co-winner South Florida Business Journal H. Wayne Huizenga Startup Award finalist Inc. 500 #127 Fastest Growing Private Company
  • EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2014 Florida finalist
  • Startup Grind Global Conference – Startup of the Year

Personal life

Santalo resides in South Florida with his wife, Rebecca, and their four children. Rebecca Santalo is the dance team coach and magnet dance director at Coral Reef Senior High School, leading the national champion Cudettes dance team. His brother, Cesar Santalo, is a contemporary artist and dean of Lynn University's College of Communication and Design.
He remains active in the regional startup ecosystem through mentorship, speaking engagements, and advisory roles, including serving as a mentor in the Techstars Miami program, a judge for youth entrepreneurship competitions such as the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship's LaunchED Challenge, a speaker at the eMerge Americas technology conference, and as a board member of Goodwill Industries of South Florida.