Events
Reimagining women’s health with WHIS 2025
There is an increasing recognition that investing in women’s health is both a moral and an economic imperative.
Women represent half of the global population and are often the primary healthcare decision-makers for their families.
Yet, historically, women’s health has been underfunded and underserved in clinical research and healthcare policies.
This has created gaps in access to care and a lack of representation of women’s health needs in medical advancements.
For the past six years, the Women’s Health Innovation Series has been a leading force in advancing women’s health.
Now, as part of its ongoing mission to increase access and accelerate innovations for the health of women, the series has undergone a transformative rebrand – expanding its scope to offer a more comprehensive, integrated approach to the diverse and complex landscape of women’s health.
By integrating their previous FemTech and Reproductive Health events under one dynamic umbrella, WHIS is reimagining how the industry engages and tackles the most critical conversations and challenges faced in women’s healthcare.
This rebrand signals a shift towards a more holistic approach—one that seeks to address systemic barriers in healthcare delivery, policy, and technology.
The Need for a Holistic Approach to Women’s Health
Historically, women’s health has been viewed primarily through the lens of reproductive and maternal health.
However, today’s healthcare landscape recognises that women face unique health challenges that require a comprehensive approach, one that encompasses physical, emotional, and mental well-being throughout the lifespan.
This holistic approach is at the core of WHIS 2025, with the event emphasising the importance of shifting the focus from isolated health conditions to integrated, patient-centred care.
As women live longer, there is an increasing need to address ageing-related conditions, such as osteoporosis, dementia, and cardiovascular diseases—conditions that affect women differently than men.
Chronic conditions like heart disease, for example, have long been studied from a male-centric perspective but require a more nuanced understanding when it comes to women’s health.
Medtronic’s President of Heart, Nina Goodheart will delve into how existing medical interventions are supporting the health of women against cardiovascular disease.
She will focus on advancements in treatment options, the critical role of early detection, personalised care, and preventative strategies.
By taking a holistic view of women’s health, healthcare systems can ensure that women receive the comprehensive care they need to thrive at every stage of life.
Reducing Barriers to Access
A holistic approach also means tackling the significant barriers women face when trying to access care.
Many women experience additional challenges such as caregiving responsibilities, financial constraints, and inadequate insurance coverage, which contribute to delayed diagnoses, poorer health outcomes, and increased strain on women, particularly in underserved communities.
To address these inequities, there is a growing recognition that a shift toward value-based care is essential.
Unlike the traditional fee-for-service models, which prioritise the volume of services provided, value-based care emphasises the importance of improving patient outcomes.
Dianne Balon, SVP of Government at Blue Cross Alberta, will discuss the importance of conveying the value of preventative care and interventions to payers.
By demonstrating the long-term benefits of investing in women’s health—through improved outcomes and reduced long-term costs—healthcare providers can make a compelling case to insurers for broader access to women’s health services.
Fertility and Maternal Health
Fertility and maternal health continue to be major areas of concern, particularly in the U.S., where access to fertility treatments remains difficult for many due to high costs, limited insurance coverage, and geographical barriers.
These systemic issues prevent many women and families from accessing the reproductive care they need, creating significant disparities in maternal health outcomes.
Neel Shah, Chief Medical Officer at Maven Clinic, will dive into the complexities of the U.S. fertility landscape.
He will address the financial and policy barriers that prevent equitable access to IVF and other fertility treatments, discussing innovative solutions, such as expanding fertility benefits through employer-sponsored insurance, telemedicine, and other models that could help democratize access to fertility services.
Additionally, a woman’s journey to motherhood is far from linear, and providing comprehensive care throughout pregnancy, delivery, and the postpartum period is essential.
This holistic approach includes addressing mental health challenges like postpartum depression and providing access to services such as prenatal education, lactation support, and childcare.
However, traditional reimbursement models often fail to support the long-term, continuous care needed to address the full spectrum of maternal health needs.
As a result, many women are left without the comprehensive support they need during these critical life stages.
Empowering Women Through Data and Technology
As women’s health continues to evolve, the role of consumer and digital health technologies is becoming increasingly important in shaping the future of care.
Wearables, connected health devices, and consumer-driven health solutions are providing women with more control over their well-being, empowering them to monitor a wide range of health metrics.
Dorothy Kilroy, Chief Commercial Officer at OURA will explore the transformative potential of wearable technologies and connected health devices in empowering women to take charge of their health. his empowerment also extends to how women engage with healthcare providers.
By sharing real-time data with clinicians, women can benefit from more personalised care plans, early detection of health issues, and targeted preventative measures.
WHIS 2025 is rethinking how women’s health is perceived and addressed – shifting from a fragmented, isolated approach to one that prioritises holistic, integrated care throughout a women’s lifespan.
By bringing together leaders from across the entire healthcare continuum, the WHIS 2025 will catalyse critical conversations and actions to reshape the healthcare system’s approach to the unique challenges women face.
Registration for WHIS 2025 is now open and you can benefit from an exclusive discount on top of their lowest ticket price (book before May 9).
Use code FTW10 for an additional 10% off.
Entrepreneur
Women’s Health Week Europe 2026 opens pitch applications for mainstage showcase at The Emirates Stadium
Women’s Health Week Europe 2026 has opened applications for its flagship start-up Pitches, giving women’s health innovators the chance to present on the mainstage at The Emirates Stadium in London on 7-8 October.
16 finalists will be selected across two categories: Medical Devices & Therapeutics and Consumer & Tech, with the shortlisted companies receiving the opportunity to pitch in front of 700+ investors, corporates, other innovators and strategic partners actively seeking solutions that can scale.
Two categories, one stage
The Medical Devices & Therapeutics category is open to companies working across medical devices, therapeutics and pharma innovation, regulated digital health, and deep-tech or science-led platforms.
The Consumer & Tech category covers consumer health and wellness brands, digital health platforms, wearables and connected data, employer and payor-led solutions, and commerce and marketplace businesses.
Any company treating a condition that affects women exclusively, differently, or disproportionately is eligible to apply.
Applications are completely free, so what do you have to lose?
Apply to pitch at WHW Europe 2026 now.
What’s in it for you?
Unmatched exposure
Present in front of 700+ investors, corporates, clinicians, and strategic partners actively seeking solutions that can scale.
With WHW Europe 2026 relocating to The Emirates Stadium and expanding to 700+ attendees across two stages, the 2026 edition represents the largest platform the series has offered to date.
A proven platform
The WHW Pitch Sessions have become one of the most commercially significant showcases in women’s health, with previous cohorts including companies that have gone on to raise investment and secure major strategic partnerships. 2024 alumni BoobyBiome, closed a £2.5M seed round in the year following their pitch at WHW Europe.
The Watchlist
All registered applicants will have the opportunity to be featured in The Watchlist, WHW Europe’s official directory of women’s health innovators to know, giving companies visibility beyond the pitch stage itself.
Applications close 28 August 2026.
Find out more about WHW Europe.
The Women’s Health Innovation Summit (WHIS) has announced that submissions are open for the 2026 Innovation Showcase, giving early and growth-stage start-ups the chance to present their solutions to the most influential audience in women’s health.
Taking place October 13–15 at Encore Boston Harbor in Everett, Massachusetts, WHIS brings together more than 1,000 decision-makers from across the women’s health ecosystem — investors, payers, health systems, pharma leaders, and employers — all under one roof.
Selected companies will pitch live on stage to an audience with the funding, expertise, and connections to accelerate their growth.
Past participants have walked away with investor introductions, commercial partnerships, and clinical collaborations that moved from conversation to contract.
WHIS is where the women’s health ecosystem comes together to get deals done,” said Sarah Rowlands, marketing director.
“The Innovation Showcase puts promising start ups directly in front of the people who can take them to the next level.”
The showcase sits at the heart of a three-day programme spanning digital health, therapeutics, diagnostics, and consumer health.
Previous attendees have included representatives from Mayo Clinic, CVS Health, Eli Lilly, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Alumni Ventures, Muse Capital, and Maverick Ventures, among hundreds of others.
Applications are open now. Start-ups can submit at
www.whisusa.com/attend/start-ups
About WHIS
Now in its eighth year, the Women’s Health Innovation Summit is the largest global gathering of senior leaders shaping the future of women’s health.
Organised by Kisaco Research, WHIS unites providers, health plans, employers, regulators, pharma, investors, and innovators to increase deal flow, expand reimbursement, improve access, and deliver better health outcomes for women at every stage of life.
WHIS 2026 takes place October 13–15 at Encore Boston Harbor, Everett, MA.
Learn more at www.whisusa.com
The third annual Femtech World Awards ceremony is almost here. And today, we’re excited to reveal the shortlist for Company of the Year, sponsored by Femovate.
This award exists to recognise a company that doesn’t just build a product, but shifts the entire landscape of women’s health.
The winner will be an organisation that has demonstrated exceptional leadership in addressing women’s health needs through groundbreaking products, services, or platforms – one that is not only advancing care today but actively shaping the future of global femtech.
Femovate, our sponsor for this category, knows this territory well.
As the global femtech incubator and a true catalyst for change in women’s health, Femovate uses design to fuel innovation across every stage of a woman’s health journey, from proactive prevention to early detection and personalised treatment.
With over US$2 million in design capital invested, 30 products launched, and 7 FDA clearances supported across their portfolio, they are uniquely placed to champion the kind of bold, rigorous company-building this award celebrates.
Congratulations to the shortlist and thank you to everyone who entered or nominated.
Company of the Year Shortlist
Founded by physicist Dr Elina Berglund Scherwitzl, Co-Founder and CEO, Natural Cycles created the world’s first FDA-cleared and CE-marked contraceptive app, establishing digital contraception as a credible and regulated category in women’s healthcare.
Achieving these clearances required extensive clinical trials and rigorous scientific validation, setting a new benchmark for digital products in the femtech space.
In doing so, Natural Cycles helped define the regulatory pathway for the industry — meaning any company looking to develop digital contraceptives today must meet the same high scientific and regulatory standards that Natural Cycles pioneered.
ŌURA, the creator of Oura Ring, stands at the forefront of global femtech, redefining how women understand and manage their health through continuous innovation, research, and responsible AI.
Oura exemplifies what it means to drive meaningful impact in a historically underserved space by delivering personalised insights across women’s health – from menstruation, to pregnancy, perimenopause, and beyond.
That leadership is visible across ŌURA’s growing women’s health ecosystem. Features such as Cycle Insights, Period Prediction, Fertile Window, and Pregnancy Insights are designed to help women interpret changes across different life stages using continuous signals including temperature trends, sleep, stress, activity, and recovery.
Rather than offering one-size-fits-all tracking, ŌURA brings context to the complexity of women’s physiology—helping members see how hormonal shifts can shape readiness, sleep quality, recovery, and daily wellbeing.
Youterus Health is transforming how uterine health is understood, diagnosed, and treated across underserved markets.
Operating at the intersection of research, technology, and care delivery, the company has built an integrated platform that converts women’s lived experiences into structured health data, enabling earlier diagnosis, improved care pathways, and more equitable access to treatment,
At the core of this innovation is the WOMB Index—a first-of-its-kind, narrative-based diagnostic tool that captures both quantitative and experiential data on uterine health conditions such as fibroids, endometriosis, and heavy menstrual bleeding.
This is complemented by an AI-enabled platform that supports multilingual data collection, real-time symptom tagging, and population-level insights, creating a new standard for how women’s health data is generated and used.
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