What Helios Software does

Helios Software (legal entity SLM Holdings, LLC) is a privately held Boston-based healthcare technology company founded in 2016 by Steve Munini, who serves as both CEO and CTO. The firm is a small (1–10 employees) specialist focused exclusively on the HL7 FHIR interoperability standard, serving healthcare organizations ranging from academic medical centers and large institutions to well-funded healthcare startups that need production-grade FHIR infrastructure or engineering assistance implementing the standard.

The company's core product is the Helios FHIR Server Enterprise Edition, a commercial-grade clinical data platform built on HL7 FHIR R4 (4.0.1) and running on Apache Cassandra with an Apache Karaf modular runtime and Java/Spring microservices. The architecture is differentiated by combining Cassandra's linearly scalable, fault-tolerant, multi-datacenter distributed design with modular FHIR bundles (resources, search parameters, operations, authentication/authorization) and SMART on FHIR OAuth2/OpenID Connect compatibility. The server is independently conformance-tested via Touchstone by AEGIS.net, with public results available for the FHIR 4.0.1 standard server suite. The most recent release (v1.1.618, 2024) supports Cassandra 4.1.5, DataStax Enterprise 6.8, and Java 21.

Helios monetizes through three streams: a multi-year subscription combining software licensing and support for the Enterprise Edition; project-based product development consulting delivered under Statements of Work or Master Services Agreements; and on-site FHIR training led by the CEO. A royalty-free No-Fee License supports non-production evaluation, and a free Healthcare Analytics Mastermind Group (6-week virtual workshop) functions as a community-led lead-generation channel alongside a 2,500+ member LinkedIn Group of Health IT developers. Referenceable engagements include UTSW's VitalSign6 SMART on FHIR application, a strategic initiative for a prominent diagnostics company, and analytics collaborations with the University of Mississippi Medical Center and UT Southwestern's Center for Depression Research and Clinical Care.

Name

Helios Software

Legal name

SLM Holdings, LLC

Website

https://heliossoftware.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Helios Software is a Boston-based healthcare technology firm building the commercial-grade Helios FHIR Server (HL7 FHIR R4 on Apache Cassandra), alongside FHIR consulting and training, for healthcare organizations seeking production-grade interoperability infrastructure.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Healthcare Interoperability Software

NAICS

Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Interoperability Standards, Profiles & Implementation (HL7/FHIR/IHE) (HLACABAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

FHIR/HL7 Data Repositories & Canonical Data Models (HLACAIAI)

Keywords

• Healthcare interoperability software
• HL7 FHIR server
• Clinical data platform
• SMART on FHIR
• Healthcare consulting services

Headquarters

HQ city

Boston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Software Subscription (Enterprise Edition): Combined subscription providing software licensing and support for the Helios FHIR Server. Subscription license is worldwide, nonexclusive, nontransferable, nonsublicensable, and terminable during the Subscription Period. Includes software updates, error corrections, and technical support.
2. Consulting Services: Product development consulting, turnaround work, implementation assistance. Provided under separate Statement of Work or Master Services Agreement.
3. Training Services: On-site personalized FHIR training hosted by CEO Steve Munini. Two-day intensive course for developers and implementers covering FHIR fundamentals, implementation strategies, and hands-on development skills.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Helios Software develops and sells the Helios FHIR Server Enterprise Edition, a commercial-grade clinical data platform built on the HL7 FHIR R4 (4.0.1) standard and Apache Cassandra distributed database for fault-tolerant, high-availability healthcare data storage and interoperability. The company complements this core software product with paid product development consulting and on-site FHIR training services for healthcare organizations.

Product overview

Helios Software is a healthcare product development company offering a unified portfolio centered on the Helios FHIR Server Enterprise Edition—a commercial-grade clinical data solution built on HL7 FHIR R4 and Apache Cassandra. The portfolio includes complementary professional services: Product Development Consulting for designing and building healthcare products, a free Healthcare Analytics Mastermind Group for collaborative learning, and instructor-led FHIR Training for teams. The products work together to enable healthcare organizations to leverage FHIR for interoperability and analytics.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Helios FHIR Server Enterprise Edition A commercial-grade clinical data solution based on the HL7 FHIR R4 (4.0.1) standard, running on Apache Cassandra for fault-tolerant, high-availability distributed storage. Designed for healthcare organizations requiring mission-critical FHIR interoperability, scalable reads and writes, and analytical workloads on commodity hardware. Includes modular Karaf bundles for resources, search parameters, operations, authentication, and authorization.
• Product Development Consulting

Quantifiable outcome

• Independent Touchstone conformance testing by AEGIS.net ensures FHIR specification compliance

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• DataStaxcoreTechnology or IntegrationDataStax provides Apache Cassandra, the distributed database underlying the Helios FHIR Server. The partnership enables the FHIR Server to leverage Cassandra's web-scale technology including linear scalability, high availability, and multi-datacenter support. Helios recommends DataStax's free online course for understanding Cassandra scaling.
• Apache Software FoundationcoreTechnology or IntegrationApache Karaf provides the polymorphic application runtime that modularizes the FHIR Specification into extensible bundles. The Helios FHIR Server runs on Apache Karaf enterprise runtime, operating on premise or in the cloud.
• Integrated Services, Inc.minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerDevelopment partner that collaborated with Helios Software and UTSW on the VitalSign6 SMART on FHIR project.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Smile Digital Health: Provides a commercial-grade FHIR-native data and interoperability platform (Health Data Cloud built on HAPI FHIR). Directly comparable as a commercial FHIR server vendor serving health systems, payers, and EHR vendors, with similar GTM around implementation services.
• Health Samurai (Aidbox): Offers Aidbox, an enterprise-grade FHIR platform for building healthcare applications and interoperability solutions. Comparable to Helios as a commercial FHIR server with developer-focused tooling and consulting services for health systems.
• 1upHealth: Provides a FHIR-based clinical data API platform aggregating EHR data for payers, providers, and digital health developers. Comparable as a developer-facing FHIR platform targeting US interoperability mandates (CMS/ONC).
• Firely: A core contributor to HAPI FHIR, offers commercial FHIR tooling, servers, and consulting to standards bodies and implementers. Comparable as a small, specialist FHIR vendor combining software products with implementation services.

Broad incumbents

• InterSystems: Sells IRIS for Health, a healthcare data platform with FHIR support, alongside its flagship HealthShare interoperability suite. Comparable as a larger, established FHIR-and-interoperability vendor serving hospitals and national health systems.
• Microsoft (Azure Health Data Services / Azure API for FHIR): Operates a managed FHIR service (Azure API for FHIR, now Azure Health Data Services) bundled into the Azure cloud. Comparable as a hyperscaler-backed FHIR R4 server with significant enterprise reach and integration into the broader Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare stack.
• Google Cloud (Cloud Healthcare API): Provides a managed FHIR R4 API as part of Google Cloud's Healthcare API. Comparable as a hyperscaler offering that competes head-to-head with commercial FHIR server vendors on managed infrastructure and scale.
• AWS HealthLake: Amazon's HIPAA-eligible FHIR-based data lake service for healthcare and life sciences. Comparable as a hyperscaler FHIR store with broad enterprise reach and bundled analytics tooling.

Emerging players

• Particle Health: Provides a FHIR-based API for clinical record retrieval and data exchange, primarily for payers and digital health companies. Comparable as a developer-facing FHIR platform monetizing interoperability for US healthcare.
• Redox: Offers a healthcare integration platform with FHIR/HL7v2 APIs to connect EHRs with digital health applications. Comparable as an interoperability platform targeting developers and healthcare organizations building FHIR-connected products.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/helios-software-inc.
• Xx.com/heliossoftware_

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Helios Software