Founders Live Tampa Bay Recap
This recap includes an abbreviated version of the original article, “AI Startup Wins Founders Live Pitch Competition,” written by Mark Parker, published on July 23, 2025, in the St. Pete Catalyst.
EasyPA co-founder & CEO, Paola Ballester, left, and Founders Live's Karla Jo Helms
“Every founder who took the stage? Already a winner in my book. Because showing up with a bold idea and putting it into the world takes guts. It takes vision. And it takes the kind of leadership that doesn’t wait for permission.”
“This area is an amazing gem. It’s no longer a diamond in the rough. But yet we don’t have the impact and the exposure that we all feel that we need so that’s why I wanted to support this.”
At the inaugural Founders Live Tampa Bay competition, held July 17 at The Birchwood in St. Petersburg, the AI platform Easy PA, Inc. took top honors. Co-founder & CEO Paola Ballester represented the company.
Easy PA, based in St. Petersburg, focuses on automating prior authorizations for medical practices.
Prior authorization refers to when doctors or providers are required to get approval from a patient’s health insurance company before they give the patient specific treatments or medications.
The startup’s product is a HIPAA-compliant software that predicts payer requirements, allowing approvals to happen more quickly. It can review various prior authorization codes to help doctors select the right identifier when describing a treatment to the insurance provider.
“We have built in a stream of intelligent tools that help physicians detect the risk of denial prior to submission and give them very concrete feedback on what can be done to improve the strength and likelihood of approval so that they are submitting clean claims from the beginning,” Ballester explained to the Catalyst.
However, she knows that denials are inevitable even with the software. This is why it can write fact-based appeal letters within minutes in case a denial happens, saving doctors and staff valuable time and energy. All physicians have to do is review the letter and make any necessary changes.
A practicing pediatrician and the medical director for utilization management at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, Ballester knows firsthand the importance of receiving prior authorization as soon as possible.
Filing these claims is a complex and labor-intensive process, she added. Using the wrong codes and documentation can result in denials, further prolonging necessary patient treatment.
“I have seen the repeated frustrations and challenges that our physicians and patients face as they navigate the system of prior authorizations,” Ballester said.
“Our mission is to restore clinical time and reduce that burnout that physicians are facing by having to constantly battle with prior authorizations and get them back to patient care, rather than paperwork.”
Karla Jo Helms, founder of Tampa-based “anti-public relations firm” JOTO PR Disruptors, was responsible for bringing the pitch event to the Tampa Bay region. She is now the city leader for Founders Live in the area.
The ultimate goal of the St. Pete competition was to support local startups and help their leaders connect, Helms explained. Future quarterly events are planned.
“This area is an amazing gem. It’s no longer a diamond in the rough,” she believes. “But yet we don’t have the impact and the exposure that we all feel that we need so that’s why I wanted to support this.”
“Huge thanks to the incredible organizers, founders, mentors, and supporters who showed up and made the event such an inspiring celebration of innovation and community.”
