Provider of dental AI solutions Pearl recently announced the appointment of Ben Plomion to chief operating officer (COO) and Dr Mike Barniv, DDS to vice president of clinical affairs. In their roles, Plomion and Dr Barniv will help drive the company’s next phase of growth and innovation while further strengthening Pearl’s leadership team.
As Pearl’s new COO, Plomion will oversee cross-departmental operations with a comprehensive focus on scaling the company’s growth. Prior to joining Pearl, Plomion served as the chief marketing officer at Dibbs, a tokenization-as-service platform, and chief growth and marketing officer at GumGum, an AI advertising company. With over two decades of experience driving successful commercialisation efforts in the field of AI, Plomion will play a key role in the advancement of Pearl’s development and commercial operations according to the company.
Dr Barniv joins Pearl as the company’s vice president of clinical affairs after spending 20 years as a full-time, private practice dentist. Most recently, he served as vice president at Delta Dental of Idaho, overseeing claims, customer service, utilisation management and AI implementation. As a former assistant professor at the University of the Pacific School of Dentistry in San Francisco, California, and the director of their AEGD residency clinic for over four years, Barniv will apply his extensive multidisciplinary dental experience towards advancing the company’s commercial, clinical, and institutional impact, according to Pearl.
“Ben and Mike each bring uniquely relevant and valuable experience to Pearl’s growing leadership team, and we are privileged to welcome their support as we expand our capabilities and reach across the global dental market,” said founder and CEO of Pearl, Ophir Tanz. “Ben’s world-class growth and organisational leadership and Mike’s extraordinary clinical and commercial versatility prime Pearl to further expand its efforts to redefine the AI-powered future of dentistry.”
Since receiving its second patent from the United States Patnetn and Trademark Office in June 2023 for its chairside AI disease dection software, Second Opinion, the company has been quick to expand its reach. It received clearance from the Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency (TMMDA) as a Class IIa medical device, and partnered with Gamma Tech, a provider of radiographic services for the Australia and New Zealand dental community, to distribute Pearl’s AI software in the region.
The company has also been seen advertising for the position of a vice president of finance on its social media pages.
Related: The TeleDentists and KELLS launch Dental Second Opinion with AI Evaluation
