What’s in a name: How a Finnish word shaped this startup’s fight for cognitive clarity in radiology

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of death globally, taking an estimated 17.9 million lives each year, reports the World Health Organisation.

However, 80 per cent of these deaths are preventable through early detection and treatment.

And here’s where AIATELLA comes into play!

In cardiovascular imaging, detecting aortic abnormalities is only the first step.

However, radiologists then face the tedious, variable task of manually measuring aortic dimensions – one of the most labour-intensive aspects of cardiovascular radiology.

This manual process is not only time-consuming but also prone to inter-observer variability.

AIATELLA’s multi-modal Automated Image Measurement (AIM) technology uses images from prevalent technologies like MRI, CT, and ultrasound to analyse vascular imaging, not only detecting but also quantifying abnormalities and changes over time in at-risk patients.

In today’s “What’s in a name” series, we dive into the real story behind finalising AIATELLA and the journey that led to it.

Born from the observation of a bottleneck

While working closely with radiologists in partner hospitals, the founders of AIATELLA witnessed something troubling.

“The inspiration for our company name came from watching radiologists at work in our partner hospitals. We noticed that these highly trained experts were spending precious hours on repetitive measurement tasks – calculating angles, tracing boundaries, and measuring volumes,” Meanwhile, complex cases requiring deep clinical insight were waiting,” says Jack Parker, CEO and Co-Founder at AIATELLA.

AIATELLA is the Finnish word for “to think,” which stood out.

“We didn’t want AI that thinks like a human,” the founders explain. “We wanted AI that defends human thinking.”

Ajatella’s tools are not about replacing radiologists. They’re about safeguarding the mental space needed for clinical reasoning.

“Our automated measurement tools aren’t about replacing radiological thinking – they’re about defending it. By automating the mechanical precision work without sacrificing accuracy,” adds Jack.

Naming that followed the mission

Unlike many startups that go through extensive naming exercises, Ajatella’s name came naturally.

“We named our company after what we’re fighting to preserve: the radiologist’s ability to ‘ajatella’ – to think deeply, reason clinically, and apply the kind of nuanced judgment that no algorithm can replicate.”

The practical bits: Domain and trademarks

When asked about domain name availability, Jack said, “Not very important.”

However, trademarking is in progress, but the team doesn’t anticipate major roadblocks.

Will the name evolve?

Possibly. As the company grows, there’s an openness to adapting product names to better reflect functionality.

“Possibly, hence our product names are slightly more focused on the features they have,” adds Jack.

A word of advice to other founders

Does the name matter? Yes. Should you obsess over it from day one? Not really.

“I think people tend to spend too long on it at the beginning. I get it, its a huge part of your vision and identity, but build first. The name will come,” he concludes.