Barti Raises $12M Series A to Accelerate AI-Powered EHR for Eye Care

[Gretchyn Bailey]

​

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 25, 2025—Barti Software, a leading AI-powered company that provides innovative electronic health records (EHR) and practice management software built for eye care practices, announced a $12 million Series A investment led by Five Elms Capital. This partnership will enable Barti to scale its go-to-market efforts, grow its team across key functions, and accelerate development of new AI capabilities and workflow automation as Barti expands into ophthalmology. The company will also continue expanding its integrated features to drive greater efficiency for practices and solidify its position as the complete solution for modern eye care.

Co-founded by an optometrist, Barti is built to solve the pain points eye care practitioners face by providing an end-to-end operating system that unifies clinical, operational, and financial workflows – empowering practitioners to focus on caring for their patients with fewer clicks, systems, and administrative needs. "As an optometrist, I've seen how software can get in the way of patient care. We built Barti to change that experience and bring the focus back to patient care and the doctor–patient relationship," said Kelly Cai, OD, COO and Co-Founder of Barti. Eye care practices face mounting pressure from staffing shortages, shrinking reimbursements, and growing online competition – all while juggling disconnected legacy systems that limit growth and burn out providers.

With unique and industry-first functionality, including an AI Scribe tailored for eye care, a native phone/VoiP system, and website management, Barti brings first-of-its-kind software that solves these challenges.

"Today, the eye care industry takes a massive leap forward," said Colton Calandrella, CEO and Co-Founder of Barti. "This is one of the last sectors of healthcare still burdened with legacy systems. Instead of waiting a decade for modern tools to trickle in, providers using Barti now have access to the latest developments in AI designed specifically for optometrists, opticians, and ophthalmologists."

With more than 200 practices onboarded in the past three years, Barti has quickly emerged as a leader in eye care technology. Barti is also the first and only company invested in by AOAExcel, the for-profit subsidiary of the American Optometric Association (AOA) delivering member benefits to support optometry practices.

"Our goal is to automate 80%+ of routine admin work through our tools, including AI agents, to enable practitioners to prioritize patient care without being bogged down by tedious administrative tasks," Calandrella added. "Our AI Agents are quickly approaching the capability to do everything from handling calls, optimizing inventory and pricing, scrubbing and submitting insurance claims, and analyzing clinical images. By 2027, practices will look and sound completely different, with doctors using their voice to manage most of their work and eliminate repetitive tasks. Our goal has always been to provide a business in a box for modern eye care practices using our unique combination of Silicon Valley tech and deep industry expertise. This partnership with Five Elms enables us to double down on that vision by dramatically accelerating our product roadmap, scaling to more practices across the country, and leading the charge into the era of AI."

"Barti is bringing real product depth to a space long underserved by legacy software," said Ryan Mandl, Partner at Five Elms Capital. "By embedding AI into the core of its platform, not as a bolt-on but as a foundational layer, Barti delivers automation that feels native to how modern practices work. We're excited to support their next phase of growth as they continue transforming how providers operate, scale, and serve patients."

About Barti Software
Barti is on a mission to transform the technology that runs eye care practices. With AI at its core, Barti's EHR and practice management platform unifies clinical charting, scheduling, billing, phones, payments, marketing and more into one streamlined system. By eliminating 10+ disconnected tools, Barti empowers eye doctors and staff to operate more efficiently, make smarter business decisions, and spend more time with patients and less time clicking. Learn more at www.barti.com.

About Five Elms Capital
Five Elms Capital is a growth investor in software businesses that users love, providing capital and resources to help companies accelerate growth and further cement their role as industry leaders.

With over $3 billion in assets under management and a team of over 80 professionals, Five Elms has invested in more than 70 software platforms worldwide. Beyond providing capital, Five Elms delivers strategic and operational expertise, focused on executing initiatives that move the needle on growth, retention, product, and AI to set companies up for long-term success. For more information, visit fiveelms.com.

 

[A A Camblor]

I found it interesting that AOAExcel was a for profit entity of the AOA. My query regarding what is done with the profits, yielded this Ai response. I highlighted the joke within.

"The profits from AOAExcel are returned to its parent organization, the
American Optometric Association (AOA). Since its founding in 2015, AOAExcel has generated millions in non-dues revenue that is used to support the AOA's advocacy and programs.
The financial arrangement works as follows:

• AOA's mission is funded: The AOA uses the revenue generated by its for-profit subsidiary, AOAExcel, to support its mission of advancing the profession of optometry.
• Investments in advocacy: AOAExcel's profits help fund the AOA's advocacy efforts. This includes actions aimed at countering abuses by vision and health plans and recouping millions of dollars for optometric practices.
• Support for member benefits: The funds also go toward developing new programs and benefits for AOA members, such as a career center, insurance, and financial tools.

 

[David Gregory Luce]

​

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 25, 2025—Barti Software, a leading AI-powered company that provides innovative electronic health records (EHR) and practice management software built for eye care practices, announced a $12 million Series A investment led by Five Elms Capital. This partnership will enable Barti to scale its go-to-market efforts, grow its team across key functions, and accelerate development of new AI capabilities and workflow automation as Barti expands into ophthalmology. The company will also continue expanding its integrated features to drive greater efficiency for practices and solidify its position as the complete solution for modern eye care.

Co-founded by an optometrist, Barti is built to solve the pain points eye care practitioners face by providing an end-to-end operating system that unifies clinical, operational, and financial workflows – empowering practitioners to focus on caring for their patients with fewer clicks, systems, and administrative needs. "As an optometrist, I've seen how software can get in the way of patient care. We built Barti to change that experience and bring the focus back to patient care and the doctor–patient relationship," said Kelly Cai, OD, COO and Co-Founder of Barti. Eye care practices face mounting pressure from staffing shortages, shrinking reimbursements, and growing online competition – all while juggling disconnected legacy systems that limit growth and burn out providers.

With unique and industry-first functionality, including an AI Scribe tailored for eye care, a native phone/VoiP system, and website management, Barti brings first-of-its-kind software that solves these challenges.

"Today, the eye care industry takes a massive leap forward," said Colton Calandrella, CEO and Co-Founder of Barti. "This is one of the last sectors of healthcare still burdened with legacy systems. Instead of waiting a decade for modern tools to trickle in, providers using Barti now have access to the latest developments in AI designed specifically for optometrists, opticians, and ophthalmologists."

With more than 200 practices onboarded in the past three years, Barti has quickly emerged as a leader in eye care technology. Barti is also the first and only company invested in by AOAExcel, the for-profit subsidiary of the American Optometric Association (AOA) delivering member benefits to support optometry practices.

"Our goal is to automate 80%+ of routine admin work through our tools, including AI agents, to enable practitioners to prioritize patient care without being bogged down by tedious administrative tasks," Calandrella added. "Our AI Agents are quickly approaching the capability to do everything from handling calls, optimizing inventory and pricing, scrubbing and submitting insurance claims, and analyzing clinical images. By 2027, practices will look and sound completely different, with doctors using their voice to manage most of their work and eliminate repetitive tasks. Our goal has always been to provide a business in a box for modern eye care practices using our unique combination of Silicon Valley tech and deep industry expertise. This partnership with Five Elms enables us to double down on that vision by dramatically accelerating our product roadmap, scaling to more practices across the country, and leading the charge into the era of AI."

"Barti is bringing real product depth to a space long underserved by legacy software," said Ryan Mandl, Partner at Five Elms Capital. "By embedding AI into the core of its platform, not as a bolt-on but as a foundational layer, Barti delivers automation that feels native to how modern practices work. We're excited to support their next phase of growth as they continue transforming how providers operate, scale, and serve patients."

About Barti Software
Barti is on a mission to transform the technology that runs eye care practices. With AI at its core, Barti's EHR and practice management platform unifies clinical charting, scheduling, billing, phones, payments, marketing and more into one streamlined system. By eliminating 10+ disconnected tools, Barti empowers eye doctors and staff to operate more efficiently, make smarter business decisions, and spend more time with patients and less time clicking. Learn more at www.barti.com.

About Five Elms Capital
Five Elms Capital is a growth investor in software businesses that users love, providing capital and resources to help companies accelerate growth and further cement their role as industry leaders.

With over $3 billion in assets under management and a team of over 80 professionals, Five Elms has invested in more than 70 software platforms worldwide. Beyond providing capital, Five Elms delivers strategic and operational expertise, focused on executing initiatives that move the needle on growth, retention, product, and AI to set companies up for long-term success. For more information, visit fiveelms.com.

That is going to so interesting to see in action.
I am still amazed that Optometry is out of the Epic software loop.
EHR is only an in office database, we have little to now exposure or access or integration with anything like MyChart.

An I not imformed, are there eyecare EHRs that have integrated acces to patients medical record and history? Is Barti going to send stuff to the PCP for us, show us there lab results and so on?