Entrepreneur
Predictions for digital health start-ups launching and scaling amidst economic turbulence
By Mary Grove, managing partner at Bread & Butter Ventures
Against the backdrop of fast-paced digital health fundings of the last two years, we’ll see some changes across early stage investment and operation of start-ups, says Mary Grove.
Digital health – innovation in software, care delivery, the infrastructure across healthcare – has been a red-hot sector to be building and investing in and the industry has seen record-breaking growth over the last few years.
Within that, the palpable shift of more resources and attention focused on women’s health has been meaningful.
In 2021, total investment in women’s health surpassed US$1bn for the first time and it is expected to hit US$60bn by 2027.
At the end of the day, women’s health is health. But I’m excited to see the continued focus on women as the patient population and decision maker.
After all, women account for half of the world’s population, not to mention 70-80 per cent of all household spending decisions.
As managing partner at Bread and Butter Ventures, I see the enormous economic opportunity around investing in women’s health, and it’s one of the reasons I’ve made it a key part of our digital health practice.
Over the last two years, we’ve invested in companies like Gabbi, Odela Health, Delfina, Nest Collaborative and Myya.
All of these teams are led by female founders or co-founders who are building with half of the world’s population in mind.
Across our portfolio, 54 per cent of our companies are led by female founders. We are investing in companies built by and for communities of all types, and the importance of democratising access to quality healthcare is one of our core beliefs.
As both the VC and digital health world reckon with the impacts of our current economic turbulence, we’ll see some changes across early stage investment and operation of digital health start-ups.
Against the backdrop of fast-paced digital health fundings of the last two years, how will startups fare amidst economic turbulence? Here are my predictions:
#1 – Seed rounds will get larger
As the public markets continue to swirl, we’ll see continued pressure at later stage venture rounds in the private market push more pressure downstream toward early stage funding rounds.
This is making it slower and more difficult to raise early stage rounds. That said, the boom of new funds raised in 2020-2022 are ripe with capital to deploy, and while it will be competitive, a crop of new seed companies will be funded.
I predict we will skip over the US$1.5-2m seed rounds and see rounds in the US$3-5m range be funded out the gate as investors will want to ensure these bets have enough capital to execute their initial go-to-market plans and derisk before they are back in market raising again.
-> What this means for start-ups
Initial launch/pre-seed rounds will be larger. Your lead investor will be more key than ever in terms of building a syndicate of great investors around the table who can support you through this fundraise and beyond. Think about what types of investors you want to assemble around your table.
#2 – Vision is paramount and incredibly important, but derisking and proving early results as quickly as possible will be equally important
Companies will be judged on results, revenue, and immediate execution vs. selling the long term platform vision. There will be increased pressure early on to prove that your solution is one a customer wants and is willing to pay for. What are clear paths to proving that you have a differentiated tech solution that someone – an employer, a payer, a provider, or patient will pay for immediately.
-> What this means for start-ups
Networks and connectivity will be more important than ever in giving you a jumpstart to those first pilot partnerships and commercial relationships. Start with small pilots of necessary and prove you can land and expand.
#3 – Major B2B business model competition.
There will be increased competition in B2B business models that target employer go-to-market channels and ultimately payer partnerships. This will happen because rising customer acquisition costs of DTC channels represent a particular challenge in a downturn. Increasingly, companies will need to focus on differentiating themselves to employer or payer customers.
-> What this means for start-ups
Not only landing but seeing success with those initial paid pilots will be more important than ever. My advice is to size up your huge target market and then test targeted pilots as quickly as possible. Focus on utilisation and engagement as your two most important metrics out of the gate to build a sticky product that users love.
#4 – Start-ups will target different patient populations
As digital health companies continue to push to grow the size of the pie of who they serve, there will be more investment in women’s health solutions that tackle populations served by Medicaid and those in rural communities.
This next wave of innovation is about inclusion, and competition to grow companies quickly also means expanding to provide solutions for all.
-> What this means for start-ups
Think differently. Be intentional with how you build product. We’re certainly seeing the rise in companies utilizing telehealth and asynchronous services to reach more patients. Are there ways of scaling locally within communities, cities, and states that allow you to improve patient outcomes and grow the business?
Whatever the macroeconomic environment brings, investing in women’s health technology remains and will remain more important than ever and the segment will continue to grow.
The adage “constraint breeds creativity” rings true in tougher economic times and I’m optimistic that brilliant companies will launch and scale even amidst these macroeconomic headwinds.
We’re still in the early chapter of a healthcare revolution that is still being written, with women’s health at the core of that economic opportunity.
Mary Grove is managing partner at Bread & Butter Ventures where she leads the firm’s investments in digital health. She was previously an investment partner at Revolution’s Rise of the Rest Fund, following 15-year career at Google. She loves working with early stage companies and working on issues of equity and democratising access to capital.
You have until Friday to nominate your femtech company of the year.
The award is one of 10 featuring at Femtech World’s third annual awards event, which attracts entries from across the UK, EU and Europe.
The Company of the Year Award is for companies that have demonstrated exceptional leadership in tackling women’s health needs through groundbreaking products, services or platforms that are shaping the future of global femtech.
If your company is driving innovation, impact and growth in this space, this award was made for you.
About the sponsor: Femovate
The category is backed by Femovate, the global femtech incubator using design to fuel innovation across every stage of a woman’s health journey, from proactive prevention through to personalised treatment.
Femovate has invested over US$2 million in design capital, working side-by-side with founding teams to bring market-ready solutions to life.
The startups it supports have collectively raised US$120 million, launched 30 products, and secured seven FDA clearances.
Why enter?
The Femtech World Awards are free to enter.
Winners and shortlisted companies receive extensive coverage across all Femtech World platforms.
Winners will also receive a trophy and the opportunity to be featured in an interview for the publication.
Find out more about the Femtech World Award and enter here by 4pm BST on Friday 17.
By Chaitra Vedullapalli, founder and president, Women in Cloud
Today’s leaders are carrying more than responsibilities.
They are carrying caregiving roles, financial pressures, legal complexities, and the quiet emotional weight of sustaining performance in unpredictable times.
And yet, most leadership forums still focus on productivity, growth, and scale, rarely addressing the human systems that enable sustained leadership.
At Women in Cloud, we believe the next generation of leadership will not be defined by endurance alone, but by discipline, preparation, and self-respect.
That is why we are proud to announce the #WICxWellness Summit 2026: The Disciplined Advantage.
This is a wellness summit focused on leadership preparedness.
Why This Summit Matters Now
Across our global community, a clear pattern has emerged.
- More professionals and executives are quietly navigating:
- Life-threatening health crises, personally or within their families
- Financial stress caused by medical, caregiving, or business shocks
- Legal and healthcare decisions with long-term consequences
- Career interruptions due to caregiving responsibilities
- Chronic exhaustion, grief, and emotional isolation
These experiences are widespread, yet rarely discussed in executive settings.
#WICxWellness 2026 brings these realities into the open with compassion, clarity, and practical guidance, so leaders can prepare, adapt, and continue forward without breaking.
This is wellness as a leadership discipline.
What We Will Explore
This year’s summit is designed to provide grounded, immediately applicable insights for founders, executives, and senior leaders.
Executive Function Under Chronic Stress
Keynote with Jennifer Brown
Focus Areas:
- Understand how chronic stress alters judgment, focus, and emotional regulation
- Identify early warning signs of cognitive overload in leadership roles
- Adaptability as a Cognitive Anchor: Navigating rapid change without compromising decision-making.
- Resilience Through Connection: Building human-centric teams to mitigate the stress of uncertainty.
- Navigating Change with Emotional Intelligence: Regulating stress responses to maintain clarity and empathy.
- Systemic Agility in High-Pressure Environments: Creating foundations of psychological safety that protect organizational function
Labs That Matter (And What to Do With Them)
Fireside Chat with Chelsey Galipeau and Chaitra Vedullapalli
Focus Areas:
- Which health tests are worth the time and investment
- Interpreting results without panic
- Preventive strategies for executive longevity
- Avoiding unnecessary medical spending
Caretaking Without Collapse
Panel With Karen Fassio, Anca Platon Trifan, Scilla Andreen, Clara Schroeder, Sheena Yap Chan
Focus Areas:
- Managing family and professional demands without burnout
- Setting humane boundaries
- Building sustainable support systems
- Ending silent sacrifice in leadership
Food as a Stability System (Not a Diet)
Fireside Chat with Nancy Watt and Meagan T. Copelin
Focus Areas:
- Nutrition for sustained energy and clarity
- Blood sugar and decision-making
- Realistic eating during travel and stress
- Food as operational resilience
Autoimmunity, Hormones & Cardiac Risk in Real Life
Fireside Chat with Dr. Linda Bing
Focus Areas:
- Managing invisible health risks
- Hormonal transitions and stamina
- Flare prevention at work
- Energy mapping for leadership performance
A Different Kind of Leadership Conversation
At Women in Cloud, we have learned something fundamental:
Performance is visible. Discipline is invisible.
Yet discipline determines whether leaders can serve, build, and lead over decades, not just quarters.
The Disciplined Advantage is about building that resilience intentionally.
Through science, lived experience, and practical frameworks, this summit equips leaders to:
- Anticipate strain instead of reacting to a crisis Design sustainable work rhythms
- Protect cognitive and emotional capital
- Lead from grounded strength
This is leadership infrastructure for the next decade.
Join Us
If you are a founder, executive, technologist, or senior professional navigating complexity and determined to lead well without sacrificing your health, clarity, or longevity, this summit is for you.
The #WICxWellness Summit 2026 is where performance meets preservation. Where ambition meets sustainability. Where leadership becomes truly durable.
We look forward to welcoming you. The Disciplined Advantage begins here.
Secure your spot: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/wicxwellness-summit-2026-tickets-1981616382945?aff=oddtdtcreator
Femtech World is continuing the search for a company to be crowned Startup of the Year.
The award is one of 10 to feature at the third annual Femtech World Awards.
The Startup of the Year Award celebrates an early-stage company making a bold impact in women’s health through innovation, vision and execution.
The winning startup will have demonstrated strong potential to transform care, accessibility, or awareness in women’s health with a scalable solution.
Consideration will be given to innovation, market traction, inclusivity, impact and the ability to address unmet needs.
The award is sponsored by Future Fertility.
The company is transforming fertility care with AI-powered solutions that close critical information gaps along the IVF journey.
Its clinically validated, non-invasive tools analyse oocyte images to predict each egg’s reproductive potential, supporting decision-making across key pathways: VIOLET™ for egg freezing, MAGENTA™ for IVF-ICSI, and ROSE™ for donor programmes and egg banks.
These reports deliver personalised insights into egg quality and ploidy potential, empowering patients and clinicians to make more informed decisions regarding next steps.
Today, Future Fertility’s technology is used in more than 300 clinics across 35+ countries.
Developed with the world’s largest oocyte image dataset linked to reproductive outcomes, Future Fertility’s AI models generate quality scores that not only guide treatment planning and manage expectations, but also serve as objective, actionable KPIs for labs—driving improved outcomes and transparency in fertility care worldwide.
The awards are free to enter, with winners receiving a trophy and an interview with Femtech World.
Find out more about the awards and enter for free here.
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