Senior executives from the World Economic Forum, Takeda and Gilead are among the latest speakers confirmed for Women’s HealthX, which takes place on 3–4 December 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts, as the event publishes its full agenda.

The newly announced speakers are Melissa Patel, lead for women’s health responsible investing at the World Economic Forum; Nicola Greenway, chief human resources officer at Takeda; and Jyoti Mehra, executive vice president of human resources at Gilead.

They join more than 75 confirmed speakers and a delegate list the organisers say will exceed 750 leaders from pharma and biotech, hospitals and health systems, payers and policymakers, all focused on closing the sex-difference data gap in healthcare.

Organisations registered to attend span much of the sector.

In pharma and biotech they include Novartis, Merck, Sanofi, AstraZeneca, Eli Lilly, Bayer, Biogen, Johnson & Johnson, Gilead Sciences, Takeda, UCB, Astellas, EMD Serono, Amgen, Bristol Myers Squibb, Boehringer Ingelheim and Chiesi.

Among hospitals, health systems and academic medical centres are Mayo Clinic, Mass General Brigham, Northwell Health, UPMC, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Northwestern Medicine, Mount Sinai Health System, UMass Memorial Medical Center, Tufts Medical Center, Yale School of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, University of Pennsylvania Health System and NYU Langone Health.

Payers and health plans represented include CVS Health, Humana, Cigna Healthcare, Kaiser Permanente, Elevance Health, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Evernorth, Fidelis Care, Health Plans Inc and UPMC Health Plan.

On the government, policy and regulatory side, attendees include the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, ARPA-H, the FDA, HHS, the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Metro Public Health Department, the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, the NHS, the Northern Mariana Islands Board of Nursing and Planned Parenthood of Florida.

A sample attendee list is available here.

Newly confirmed panels

Patel will join Sheri Schully, deputy chief medical and scientific officer at the All of Us Research Program, and Lindsey Miltenberger, chief advocacy officer at the Society for Women’s Health Research, for a panel titled “Driving Inclusive Health Research on a Global Scale: Using Data to Understand National Priorities and Address Critical Gaps in Women’s Health.”

The session will look at the health priorities countries are focusing on today and how data can be used to identify gaps in women’s health that remain overlooked.

Greenway and Mehra will take part in a panel titled “Empowering Workforces Through Women’s Health,” in which corporate health leaders discuss women’s health priorities from both employee and employer perspectives, and which benefits organisations should be prioritising.

The full agenda is now available, and registration is open.

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.

Apply to pitch at 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