News
Femtech’s next frontier: From buzzword to backbone of women’s health innovation
Julien de Salaberry, CEO and Founder, Galen Growth, reflects on the findings of a new report quantifying the $360b opportunity in women’s health
In the near decade since “Femtech” was coined, digital health ventures targeting women’s health have evolved from niche apps to a dynamic sector addressing core medical needs.
The Galen Growth newly released Femtech 2025 report—powered by Galen Growth’s proprietary HealthTech Alpha™ platform—reveals how Femtech has matured, where critical gaps persist and what it will take for the sector to deliver on its health potential.
Despite a 3.2x growth in the number of ventures and a 15.3x surge in strategic partnerships during the last 10 years, the age-old dilemma remains: while the need is massive and the innovation landscape vibrant, Femtech still lacks structural support, clinical integration and the investment discipline needed to match its return on investment potential with lasting public health impact.
A Decade of Progress—and Ongoing Gaps
The expansion of the Femtech innovation enterprise is unmistakable.
From fewer than 300 companies in 2015, active digital ventures in women’s health have tripled to 942 as of early 2025.
These ventures now span gynecology, oncology, cardiovascular care, menopause, fertility, and more, recognising that women’s health is not one category, but a continuum of needs across the lifespan.
Yet, funding remains a bottleneck.
In 2024, Femtech secured $2.2 billion in venture capital, just a fraction of the $26 billion deployed across digital health globally.
The growth of capital deployed in Femtech has increased only 1.4x during the past decade, versus 2.6x for digital health overall.
While that imbalance is beginning to shift—2024 saw a 32 per cent year-on-year increase in Femtech investment—the current levels are insufficient to support the sector’s scale and maturity.
Beyond Fertility: A Broader Definition of Femtech
Much of Femtech’s early visibility came from practical fertility tracking and pregnancy apps. These tools remain vital, but data show the category has expanded significantly.
Today, gynecology and oncology dominate in volume and funding, but new frontiers like menopause, cardiovascular disease and mental health are gaining traction.
Interestingly, conditions like Alzheimer’s, autoimmune disease, and chronic pain—where women are disproportionately affected—remain underrepresented in investment portfolios.
This represents the persistent clinical oversight and a significant commercial opportunity. “The so-called “ghost market” of women’s health, valued at hundreds of billions, is still underserved”.
To be transformative, Femtech must address the entirety of the women’s health continuum, including those therapeutic areas that are not traditionally branded as female-specific but affect women in distinct ways.
Clinical Rigor Meets Market Expectations
One of the most revealing findings in our Q1v2025 report is the comparative strength of clinical evidence generated by Femtech ventures.
On average, they produce nearly twice the volume of peer-reviewed research, clinical trials, and regulatory filings than other digital health companies.
Julien de Salaberry
Why? Because Femtech ventures face higher scrutiny, not just from regulators but from the market.
While all digital health solutions making medical claims must meet standard evidence requirements, the bar appears to be unofficially higher for women’s health offerings.
This extra burden, if not carefully balanced, may stifle innovation.
Still, the sector’s ability to meet those standards proves its resilience and scientific credibility.
Health Systems, Not Just Consumers
One of the more encouraging trends identified in the Galen Growth Report is the growing shift from direct-to-consumer models to deeper integration with health systems.
In 2024, 42 per cent of all Femtech partnerships involved health systems—a marked increase from just 10 per cent in 2020.
This reflects a critical shift: Femtech is no longer just a convenience play but the importance of integrated new approaches into the standard of clinical care.
That evolution is essential for sustainability.
DTC strategies alone cannot reach underserved populations or secure the reimbursement pathways necessary for scale.
Systemic integration—through payers, providers, and public institutions—is how Femtech will bridge access gaps and embed within real-world care delivery.
Exit Signals and Market Maturity
A healthy innovation ecosystem depends not only on venture creation but also on viable exits.
In 2024, 56 per cent of Femtech M&A activity came from venture-to-venture deals, suggesting that even amid slower funding cycles, startups are finding ways to consolidate and grow.
High-profile examples like Willow’s acquisition of Elvie and Flo Health’s $200 million Series C round underscore the market is maturing.
These are not isolated wins—they represent a cohort of ventures achieving scale, clinical validation, and investor confidenc
Investment Trends: Signs of Momentum
Femtech’s funding trajectory reflects cautious optimism.
After a downturn in 2023, that many in the digital health ecosystem experienced, 2024 saw a strong rebound with six mega-deals (≥$100M), including significant investments from RH Capital, General Catalyst, and The Case for Her.
The U.S. led with $1.3B in funding, while Europe experienced the fastest growth, surging 157 per cent year-on-year.
Asia-Pacific remains an important innovation hub, especially in AI-powered diagnostics, though its funding declined slightly in 2024.
Notably, nearly half of active Femtech ventures remain pre-Series A—indicating a broad base and a need for greater growth-stage support.
Five Forces That Will Shape Femtech
As we look ahead, five structural shifts will determine the future of Femtech:
- Broadening the Scope: Innovation must go beyond fertility to include chronic conditions, menopause, mental health, and autoimmune diseases.
- Breaking the DTC Barrier: Structural partnerships with health systems, employers, and insurers are key to scaling access and equity.
- Balancing Evidence and Agility: While validation is vital, excessive requirements impede innovation. We must strike a balance.
- Funding the Middle: Early-stage ventures need greater access to Series A and B capital to avoid stall-outs and scale successfully.
- Smart Consolidation: M&A will continue to be a growth engine. Ventures with complementary capabilities must seize this moment to build category leaders.
Femtech Is Not a Trend—It’s an Imperative
Women’s health is not an edge case in the health system—it is foundational.
Investing in women’s health is not a niche strategy; it’s a direct investment in societal productivity, equity, and well-being.
The growth and insights shared in Femtech 2025 reflect market awareness of evidence-based innovation, which empowers leaders across the life science, digital health, and investment communities to act decisively.
As the financial and deal trends suggest, innovators and investors should not allow another decade to pass with unmet needs hiding in plain sight.
As this year’s global analysis demonstrates, the next generation of Femtech isn’t about visibility but value, integration and health systems impact.
Light exercise and less sitting may reduce pregnant women’s risk of serious blood pressure complications, according to a new study.
Researchers have proposed a daily activity and sleep guide that they say was linked to a nearly 30 per cent lower risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.
The suggested pattern includes fewer than eight hours of sedentary time, at least seven hours of light physical activity, around 22 minutes of more intense activity and nearly nine hours of sleep.
The University of Iowa-led study examined the daily behaviours of 470 pregnant women across all stages of pregnancy.
Participants wore monitors that measured physical activity over 24-hour periods and recorded how long they spent asleep.
Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy include chronic high blood pressure, gestational hypertension and pre-eclampsia.
Gestational hypertension is high blood pressure that develops during pregnancy, while pre-eclampsia is a potentially serious condition involving high blood pressure and signs that organs may be affected.
Sedentary behaviour means being mostly inactive, such as sitting or lying down.
Light physical activity can include casual walking, moving around the home or standing.
Moderate to vigorous activity includes movement such as brisk walking, where breathing and heart rate increase.
Kara Whitaker, associate professor in the department of health, sport, and human physiology at Iowa and corresponding author of the study, said: “We are identifying the optimal composition of movement behaviours across the day associated with the lowest risk of developing HDP and the most improved health outcomes.
“This blueprint holds for each and every trimester of pregnancy.”
Study participants were enrolled at sites in Iowa City, Pittsburgh and Morgantown, West Virginia.
The women wore activity and sleep monitors for at least one week during each trimester of pregnancy.
Four in five participants were non-Hispanic white and nearly a quarter lived in rural areas.
The data showed a steep rise in risk among pregnant women who were sedentary for more than 10 hours a day.
Women who increased light physical activity to at least four hours a day reduced their risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy to 15 per cent from 30 per cent.
Whitaker said: “Just moving around more seems to have significant health benefits.
“And I think it also may be a more feasible target for women who are pregnant who are not exercising regularly.”
The researchers said they were surprised that longer durations of moderate to vigorous physical activity did not appear to provide additional benefit.
Sleep beyond a certain duration also did not appear to bring major further benefits.
Whitaker said: “Through this study, we are providing evidence that reducing sedentary behaviour and engaging in light physical activity are important, and maybe more important, when it comes to pregnancy and health.”
The findings may be relevant beyond pregnancy because clinical research has shown that women who develop hypertensive disorders of pregnancy are more than twice as likely to develop heart disease later in life.
Cardiovascular disease includes conditions affecting the heart and blood vessels, such as heart disease and stroke.
Whitaker said: “We know that cardiovascular disease is the number one killer of women, and if we can intervene in pregnancy and prevent women from developing a hypertensive disorder of pregnancy, we are putting them on a better trajectory, away from cardiovascular disease and toward more optimal cardiovascular health.”
The study was published online on June 10.
A second study, published online on May 27, looked more closely at the ratio and type of sedentary behaviour and light physical activity linked to a lower risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.
Whitaker is a lead co-author on that study.
Co-authors in the June 10 study include Alex Crisp, Jaemyung Kim, Karina Smith, Donna Santillan, Mark Santillan and Bridget Zimmerman, from Iowa; Jacob Gallagher, from Iowa State University; Melissa Jones, from Oakland University in Michigan; Bethany Barone Gibbs, Katrina Wilhite, Alexis Thrower and Iqra Sheikh, from West Virginia University; and Sabera Rahman, Janet Catov, Christopher Kline and Maisa Feghali, from the University of Pittsburgh.
The National Institutes of Health, the University of Iowa Institute for Clinical and Translational Science, the University of Pittsburgh Clinical and Translational Science Institute and the West Virginia Clinical and Translational Science Institute funded the research.
We are excited to reveal the winners of the third annual Femtech World Awards.
The winners were announced at a virtual event this afternoon attended by shortlisted companies, along with sponsors and judges.
The event welcomed guests from the UK, Europe, Asia, Africa and North America.
Thank you to all 174 entries, as well as the sponsors for making the event possible.
See you in 2027!
Femtech World Awards 2026 Winners
Winner:
Shortlisted:
IVI RMA x Juno Genetics
Natural Cycles
Winner:
Highly commended:
U-Ploid
Shortlisted:
Hello Inside
Winner:
WISE HF, led by Prof. Mary Ryder
Highly commended:
Cardiac College for Women
Shortlisted:
Hyvelle Ferguson-Davis
CognitiveCare
Winner:
Highly commended:
Youterus
Shortlisted:
ŌURA
Winner:
Shortlisted:
LeanShield by ParrotPal Group
Perigen
Winner:
Shortlisted:
Body Moody
Looop
Winner:
Shortlisted:
Owning Your Menopause
Womeno
Winner:
Shortlisted:
The Blue Box
Celbrea
Winner:
Shortlisted:
HealCycle
Mor
Winner:
Shortlisted:
HRC Fertility
Mira
Pregnant women’s expectations about postpartum sleep may predict sleep quality after birth, outweighing prior sleep and psychiatric history, a study suggests.
The findings suggest attitudes and beliefs about sleep during pregnancy could be a modifiable risk factor for postpartum sleep concerns.
They also indicate that, among women expecting the poorest sleep, higher postpartum anxiety may further worsen sleep quality.
Sammy Dhaliwal, lead author is clinical health psychologist and research fellow in the department of obstetrics and gynaecology at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
Dhaliwal said: “Most pregnant women in our sample anticipated poor postpartum sleep before it occurred, and it was striking that those expectations predicted worse sleep outcomes even after accounting for factors such as prior sleep disorders, psychiatric history, and number of previous births.
“This suggests that attitudes and beliefs about sleep during pregnancy may represent a modifiable target for early intervention before postpartum sleep problems emerge.”
Sleep disturbance affects an estimated 60 to 80 per cent of postpartum women and is linked to a higher risk of depression and anxiety.
Researchers said it is often regarded as an expected part of life after childbirth rather than a health issue that may be addressed earlier.
The study enrolled 432 pregnant women at about 24 weeks of gestation, meaning around 24 weeks into pregnancy.
Participants completed measures of their expectations about postpartum sleep, current sleep quality using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and mood using validated depression and anxiety scales.
Assessments were repeated at six, 12 and 24 weeks postpartum.
A subset of 49 women also wore wrist actigraphy devices at six to eight weeks postpartum.
Actigraphy uses a wearable device, similar to a watch, to estimate sleep and wake patterns based on movement.
The results showed that 70 per cent of pregnant women, or 301 of 432 participants, expected poor sleep in the postpartum period.
Researchers found that predicted sleep disruption during pregnancy was a significant predictor of postpartum sleep concerns.
Among first-time pregnant women without prior health concerns, those who expected greater sleep disturbance had significantly more disrupted sleep after birth, measured by both actigraphy and self-report.
Among women who expected the worst sleep quality, higher postpartum anxiety significantly worsened both measured sleep and self-reported sleep, independent of anxiety levels during pregnancy.
Dhaliwal said the findings point to two possible areas for intervention: addressing sleep-related beliefs during pregnancy and treating postpartum anxiety.
Dhaliwal said: “Postpartum sleep disruption is often treated only after problems develop, but our findings suggest there may be an opportunity to intervene earlier during pregnancy.
“Addressing sleep-related beliefs and postpartum anxiety during prenatal and postpartum care may help improve sleep and emotional well-being in new mothers.”
Menopause3 weeks agoPerimenopause misinformation ‘putting women at risk’
Hormonal health3 weeks agoNHS urged to update website following renaming of PCOS
Menopause2 weeks agoWomen still being failed when they reach menopause, experts say
Entrepreneur2 weeks agoWomen’s Health Innovation Summit opens submissions for 2026 Innovation Showcase
Insight1 week agoBritish women among angriest in Europe, health survey reveals
News2 weeks agoThree menopause innovators shortlisted for Femtech World Award
Fertility4 weeks agoAI could transform ovarian care through personalisation, study finds
News3 weeks agoLow insulin diet and avoiding four food groups may prevent menopause weight gain