You Have to Prune a Tree If You Want It to Bear Fruit

Pear Therapeutics is having to prune its workforce and other expenses in order to preserve and extend its cash runway. The digital therapeutics firm disclosed in a regulatory filing that it has restrcutred its operations to narrow its near-term business focus and reduce its workforce due to the current macroeconomic environment. About 25 Pear employees will be layed off, which represents about 9% of the company's full-time workforce as of July 25. The restructuring efforts are expected to reduce operating expenses by about $28 million over the next 18 months.

Supply Shocks Cripple Smith & Nephew

Deepak Nath had his work cut out for him when he took the helm of Smith & Nephew in April. Nath succeeded Roland Diggelmann, who stepped down "by mutual agreement," the company announced in late February. "There are more opportunities than challenges with Smith & Nephew," Nath told investors Thursday during the company's second-quarter earnings call. "This is a great company with a great outlook, and I believe we're not far away from showing this externally in all aspects of our business." But it was the challenges more than the opportunities that investors focused on during the day's trading. The company's stock plunged about 10% to $26.46 at market close Thursday and fell another 3% in pre-market trading Friday.

And in case you missed our last Medtech in a Minute report...

Amazon Reveals Another Piece of Its Healthcare Puzzle

Amazon has been making plays in healthcare for some time now, giving us pieces of the puzzle here and there while keeping us guessing about the bigger picture. This week we got a key puzzle piece, and that picture is finally coming into focus. The tech giant plans to acquire One Medical, a national primary care organization described as "human-centered" and "technology powered," for $3.9 billion.

Invitae's Drastic Downsizing Decision

More than 1,000 Invitae employees will be getting pink slips as part of the genetics company's massive restructuring plan. The company said it will also exit some of its under-performing businesses, and reduce the number of countries it serves from more than 100 to a mere dozen. The plan comes as Kenneth Knight takes over as CEO, succeeding Sean George. These actions are expected to generate $152 million in savings, Knight said. The entire restructuring plan is expected to deliver about $326 million in annual cost savings by the end of 2023.

GE Plays the Name Game

GE has revealed the names of its spinoffs as it prepares to split into three independent companies: GE Healthcare, GE Aerospace, and GE Verona. GE Vernova has the most radical name change and will focus on renewable energy, power, digital, and energy financial services. GE Healthcare will sport the color purple for its brand, representing compassion.