Founder Spotlight: Peter Cunningham, Evolve

In this edition of Founder Spotlight, we’re featuring Peter Cunningham, founder and president of Evolve Healthcare Marketing, a performance-driven agency that specializes exclusively in full-funnel patient acquisition for mid-market healthcare practices. With a sharp focus on ROI, compliance, and strategy, Evolve has built a reputation for helping growth-minded providers scale profitably — and now, they’re adding AI into the mix.

We sat down with Peter to hear about Evolve’s journey, their unique approach to marketing in healthcare, and how AI is reshaping the way his agency supports clients.

Peter Cunningham

President, Evolve

What does your business do, and what inspired you to start it?

At Evolve, we help exceptional healthcare providers grow by managing the entire patient journey — from initial awareness all the way to appointment scheduling and intake. Our clients are mid-market practices looking to compete and win in highly competitive environments, and we provide the people, processes, and predictive technology to help them do exactly that.

What sets us apart is that we’re healthcare-exclusive. Too many agencies don’t understand the nuances, compliance requirements, or operational challenges of medical practices. We do — and we’ve built our entire model around delivering measurable ROI through marketing that actually drives results.

What’s been the biggest challenge in your journey, and how did you overcome it?

COVID was a major hit. While healthcare is often called “recession-proof,” it was definitely not COVID-proof. Elective procedures were paused, which impacted many of our clients — and by extension, our own business. But the real pain came from the labor shortage that lingered long after shutdowns.

We pushed through by doubling down on strategy, helping clients automate where possible, and focusing on what we could control: delivering ROI. That experience shaped us into a more resilient, more focused agency — and gave us an even deeper understanding of what practices truly need to grow.

Where do you see AI making the biggest impact in your industry over the next five years?

AI is the biggest innovation since the Internet — and in healthcare marketing, it’s set to revolutionize the entire funnel. From smarter ad targeting to AI-powered chat that engages and qualifies leads 24/7, we’re already seeing the shift.

In the next five years, AI will streamline patient intake, automate follow-ups, and personalize every touchpoint. Practices that adopt AI early will see faster growth, lower costs, and better patient experiences — all without adding headcount.

How has Vengo AI helped your business capture leads and improve workflows?

We launched our Vengo AI agent just over a week ago, and the engagement has been fascinating. It’s early, but we’ve already had 15 sessions, and the potential to capture, educate, and convert new leads automatically is massive. AI is here, and it’s not just a trend — it’s a competitive edge.

Vengo AI has added a powerful new layer to our digital presence. Instead of relying solely on forms or human follow-up, we’re now able to engage site visitors in real-time, answer their questions, and direct them to the right service — even outside business hours.

That’s huge for healthcare. People are searching for care at all hours, and now we can be there for them without adding headcount. We see Vengo’s AI agents not as a replacement for our team, but as an extension of it — helping us serve better, faster, and more efficiently.

What advice would you give other founders considering AI?

Start now. Don’t wait for it to be perfect or fully proven. If you embrace AI early, you’ll be ahead of the curve — and that advantage will compound.

Pick a use case, like lead capture or patient education, and integrate it with your existing process. Then refine and build from there. What matters is that you actually start, because the organizations that lean in now are going to outpace their competitors quickly.

Want to scale like Peter and streamline your digital operations with AI?

Try Vengo AI free — no credit card required. Train your AI agent, plug it into your site, and start turning visits into conversions.
Use code VENGO50 for 50% off your first month after the trial.

Visit VengoAI.com and unlock the next level of patient acquisition.