When it comes to innovation, it can be very easy to get lost among the dozens of words ending in “tech”. In the healthcare market, then, we encounter daily Healthtechs, Medtechs, Biotechs, DeepTechs and even EdTechs. Although everyone is in some way close to the health thesis, each niche does it in a different way.
This is because condensing the needs of the health market into a single category would be impossible. Year after year, health challenges continue to grow. Let's consider that in this sector, each figure - such as hospitals, operators, pharmacists, professionals, and patients - has different needs.
Thus, the fragmentation of terms helps to look at each segment with greater attention to detail. Based on this principle, we can list that everyone's main pain would currently be:
- Service providers — need strategies and resources that allow the reduction of waste in health.
- Health operators — are looking for approaches and tools to contain the number of frauds;
- Pharmaceutical companies — focus on the development of medications and assertive therapies;
- Patient — they are looking for what can facilitate access and improve treatment;
- Specialists — need tools to reduce the bureaucratic part of the work, such as electronic medical record. A continuing education it is also promising and can help the professional to keep up to date.
So let's understand the similarities, differences, and potential of each one throughout the text below.
Healthtech
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the term 'health technology' can be used to refer to innovative approaches to medical devices, substances, and procedures (whether medical or surgical). Within this, the term also considers that these advances can be used to boost prevention, or diagnostic, treatment And even rehabilitative.
Consequently, its shorter version, “healthtech”, is commonly used to talk about software-based medical technologies and solutions, whose purpose is to help broad audience dealing with health.
In other words, healthtechs generate solutions to facilitate activities related to health in general. As an example, it is worth considering that this classification includes teleconsultation platforms, devices for tracking physiological signals, and applications.
Healthtechs' market potential
In the analysis carried out by Grand View Research, the health care technology market was estimated at 663 billion dollars in 2023. From 2024 to 2030, it is expected to continue growing at around 15.8% per year.
Among the factors that justify this expectation, researchers cite the growing use of smartphones around the world; growing demand for health monitoring outside hospitals; increasingly advanced technological health infrastructure; increase in the number of initiatives and investments in digital health solutions.
Still in 2023, District mapped 1023 startups focused on health. Of those, 26.44% had health management solutions. In parallel, solutions to facilitate access to health correspond to 12.46% of initiatives and 11.96% to telemedicine.
However, some bottlenecks still need to be addressed for growth to continue without major difficulties. Among them, we can mention:
- Integration and interoperability — healthtech solutions need to integrate efficiently with existing health systems, which can be challenging due to the variety of platforms and protocols used in different institutions.
- Data protection and privacy — the increased use of health apps and devices requires new care regarding the security and privacy of patient data. With the creation of the General Data Protection Act (LGPD), carelessness with such issues can generate great financial losses.
- Adherence and acceptance — some health professionals and patients may be resistant to the adoption of new technologies. This is because, on the one hand, there is mistrust, on the other, we see that the lack of preparation to deal with such resources also contributes to this type of resistance.
Medtech
In parallel, there is the term”Medtech”. The diminutive of “medical device” is used to represent medical technologies whose purpose is to optimize diagnoses and treatments. Examples include endoscopic devices, robots for surgical assistance, and the like.
Medtechs' market potential
Meanwhile, last year, the medtech market was valued at around 518 billion dollars, according to the analysis of Fortune Business Insights. For the current year, this amount is expected to reach US$ 542 billion and for 2032, the expected amount is 886 billion dollars. Thus, the annual growth of this market would be 6.3%.
From the perspective of researchers, one of the main factors driving this market is the increase in the incidence of chronic diseases - such as diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular conditions. Among other scenarios that also promote this niche, analysts point to the increase in the world's elderly population; greater market focus on disease prevention measures; improvement of the safety, quality, and efficiency of the regulatory environment.
Also according to the analysis of Fortune Business Insights, some device segments are growing—and should continue growing—more than others. See the image below:
As the graph shows, the most prominent medical devices in 2023 were aimed at the sector surgical, in vitro diagnostics, orthopedic, cardiovascular and diagnostic imaging.
In these cases, medtechs come up with solutions that facilitate the monitoring of physiological signs and can also offer personalized guidance for each stage of the clinical picture.
In a general perspective, analysts see this niche as highly fragmented, since it has companies of various sizes leading the way. These include Medtronic, Johnson & Johnson Services, GE Healthcare, Stryker, Koninklijke Philips NV, Siemens Healthineers AG, BD, Cardinal Health.
In addition, North America remains the leader, but there are considerable expectations regarding the annual growth of medtechs in Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa.
On the other hand, there are still challenges such as issues related to intellectual property, the need for continuous investment in research and development to maintain competitiveness.
- Regulation — medical devices are subject to strict standards and regulations. Navigating through such requirements can be time-consuming and expensive.
- Continuous innovation — the sector requires constant innovation to meet advances in medicine and the diverse profile of patients, which requires substantial investments in research and development.
- Cost and affordability — developing medical devices can be expensive, and ensuring that these products are accessible to a wide range of patients is a significant challenge.
Deeptech
According to Dictionary Cambridge, ”Deeptech“ is a term used to speak of business and/or research based on advanced science and technologies. The term encompasses more comprehensive areas, such as biotechnology, as well as solutions based on artificial intelligence, blockchain, robotics, quantum computing, and others.
Also according to the English dictionary, this nomenclature is also used to talk about companies - especially startups - whose business model is based on cutting-edge technology, with the purpose of innovation and other scientific advances.
Deeptechs' market potential
According to CB Insights experts, the deeptech segment is growing rapidly and is expected to reach 700 billion dollars by 2026. However, there are challenges to be overcome. Chief among them is the technical complexity and the need for investment in research and development.
In this sense, the complexity of deeptech technologies - such as quantum computing and advanced artificial intelligence - relates to the requirement of a high degree of technical preparation, which may hinder the search for qualified professionals and, consequently, increase labor costs.
On the other hand, merging very disruptive technologies with secure business approaches is also often a bottleneck. As a result, deeptechs suffer from a lack of investment in research, especially in clinical phases. Because it is a business model whose outcome may be uncertain and time-consuming, not every investor likes to embrace risk.
Despite this, “deep technologies” deal with less competition at the beginning and cause the most relevant changes for society.
Biotech
Biotechnology, on the other hand, is a sub-area within deeptech. What characterizes biotechs as such is the use of biology to solve problems and develop products, as stated by Encyclopædia Britannica. The encyclopedia also reinforces that the most prominent biotechnology sector is genetic engineering, which works in the development of therapies and medications.
Biotech market potential
With regard to its market potential, Grand View Research He placed the niche of biotechnology in the region of 1 trillion dollars in 2023. With the annual growth rate estimated at 13.96%, it is expected to reach the level of US$ 3.88 trillion by 2030.
Currently, biotech initiatives are favored by regulatory changes, increased demand for treatments for chronic diseases, increased investment in research and development, the advancement of technologies, and greater government incentive in general.
In this segment, it is common for innovations to include genetic engineering resources, gene editing, and other advanced techniques. In addition, leading names in this industry include companies such as AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Abbott, Sanofi, Biogen, Novartis AG, Gilead Sciences and La Roche.
Edtech
The term “edtech”, on the other hand, refers to technologies applied in education. In other words, online learning platforms, interactive teaching tools, and educational software are considered.
Strictly speaking, maybe edtechs shouldn't be on this list. However, medical education it is one of the major concerns of the health sector. In this sense, it's not just about a quality degree, but about residencies and continuing education.
According to a reportage published in 2022, that year Brazil saw the opening of 173 new medical degrees, reaching the number of 353 institutions. In 2024, that number is already at the level of 384 - and we are not even counting the courses that circulate even without authorization from the Ministry of Education.
Still on this issue, according to the portal Resmedica, Brazil became the second country with the most medical schools in the world, second only to India. This scenario opens up two problems: the low quality of education provided at many of these faculties and the increased competitiveness due to vacancies in residency courses.
Thus, edtechs with a focus on health - such as Heal, one of Green Rock's investments — appear as a tool to help students overcome these difficulties.
Edtechs' market potential
In 2024, Report of District, Brazil is the Latin American country that invests the most in education startups, accounting for 70% of the total number of edtechs, as well as 80% of the investment volume.
For comparative purposes, it is worth considering that the Brazilian edtech sector generated around 475 million dollars between 2015 and the first quarter of 2024. Meanwhile, the movement of neighboring countries ranges from 2 million to 69.5 million dollars.
From a global perspective, the educational technology market was estimated at 142 billion dollars in 2023. From 2024 to 2030, it is expected to grow by 13.4%.
However, this segment still needs to overcome challenges associated with the difficulty of accessibility of these technologies; maintaining teaching quality and integration with other teaching methods.
.png)
.png)
