The Femtech Revolution - How New Technology is Supporting a Previously Overlooked Healthcare Segment

The Femtech Revolution - How New Technology is Supporting a Previously Overlooked Healthcare Segment

Summary

Despite the fact that one half of the world’s population are women, and women account for 80% of consumer purchasing decisions in the healthcare market, women’s health has historically been largely neglected. Women not only experience a breadth of distinct, gender-specific conditions such as endometriosis and menopause, but have also reported differing symptoms to more general problems such as cardiovascular disease. The rapid proliferation of Fem-Tech in recent years has sought to target this gap in the market and has demonstrated impressive early gains. First coined by entrepreneur, Ida Tin, in 2016, the term Fem-Tech refers to any technology or innovation designed to improve women’s health and wellbeing, and a number of new start-ups operating in this field have emerged in recent years. However, given that the industry is still in a relatively nascent stage, the opportunities for growth are numerous.

Key Highlights

• Although the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a surge in demand for healthcare, contributing to market growth, it has also placed unprecedented pressure on global healthcare systems and providers. As a result, new vulnerabilities and longstanding inconsistencies in access to, and delivery of, universal healthcare have been exposed. This is particularly true when considering gendered divisions in healthcare, with emerging research indicating that women tend to be at greater risk of being disadvantaged by existing systems. In light of this, several governments around the world are now beginning to develop distinct women’s health strategies to tackle the issue.
• Greater public and political attention of the distinct health and wellbeing related issues and inequalities women are confronted with has set the scene for the emergence of a new Fem-Tech trend in the healthcare market. In recent years, a number of new companies specializing in the development of technology to improve healthcare delivery for women have gained trained and received significant investor attention. For instance, in July 2021, leading market player Elvie raised $80m in a Series C funding round.
• Although the Fem-Tech market is in an emergent stage, it is growing rapidly. The number of start-ups operating in the market is estimated to have grown to around 200 companies worldwide, suggesting that the market is becoming increasingly competitive. Nevertheless, companies are heavily concentrated in segments such as menstruation and menopause, sexual health, and wearables, suggesting that there are significant market opportunities for new entrants to grow. Diagnostics is one key area, with several start-ups beginning to explore the use of AI for early detection of illnesses such as cervical cancer. Meeting the needs of underserved communities presents a further area in which Fem-Tech companies can expand.

• Learn how Femtech is developing
• See what opportunities it is providing
• understand where the industry is going

• What is Femtech?
• What problems is it solving?
• How good is the industry's future looking?