Healthtech dealmaking is surging, with our latest M&A report on the sector revealing that 1H25 saw the highest number of disclosed deals on record, surpassing even the much-discussed acquisition boom during and just after the pandemic. 

While economic conditions improved slightly, and high investor interest in AI innovation have certainly set a favourable context for M&A across the tech landscape, there are specific trends propelling acquisition and investment activity in Healthtech. Let’s look through some of those identified by the Hampleton Partners report, along with fundraises exemplifying each trend.   

What our report says: “The global healthcare cloud market is growing in line with the increasing adoption of electronic health records (EHR), telemedicine, and AI-augmented SaaS tools for diagnostics and data analytics; it is projected to reach USD 121.6bn by 2029 at a CAGR of ≈18%.”

Example deal: It’s not just developers of cloud platforms which benefit from healthcare cloud migration; companies providing bolt-on tools for specific use cases such as remote patient monitoring, predictive analytics and risk mitigation are also on investor radars. An example is Y Combinator-backed firm WorkDone, which in May announced USD 1.8m in pre-seed funding. Now called Adentris, the startup has developed an AI copilot which integrates with existing EHR systems to flag and resolve documentation errors such as incorrect medication times and missed discharge notes.

What our report says: “The automation of repetitive administrative tasks is boosting clinician productivity, with one global survey revealing that 92% of healthcare leaders believe generative AI will play a critical role in mitigating staff shortages by taking over tasks like clinical notetaking and patient communications.” 

Example deal: In September, healthcare information management startup Predoc secured USD 30m in combined seed and Series A funding. Its platform automates the process of patient data retrieval, leveraging AI to extract and index records across a range of sources and formats, and even providing clinical assessments of patients based on their histories. This allows doctors and other medical professionals to spend less time on admin and focus more of their attention on core clinical duties.

While our report highlighted admin automation, we of course expect to see rising demand for companies whose tools are automating processes across all areas of healthcare, from patient monitoring to drug discovery to diagnostics, which takes us into the next trend…

What our report says: “The leveraging of AI to optimise or entirely execute clinical tasks themselves is growing apace, with applications trained on vast archives of medical histories able to assess patient scans, make diagnoses and assist in clinical decision-making.”

Example deal: In February, Harrison.ai announced that it had raised USD 112m in Series C funding, a windfall which reflects the company’s impressive pace of growth. Its AI tools, which analyse CT scans, X-rays and pathology slides for signs of disease, have been rolled out in numerous healthcare settings around the world – more than half of all radiologists in Australia have access to the platform, while all CT brain scans taken in Hong Kong’s A&E departments and more than a third of chest X-rays in England are analysed using Harrison’s technology.

It's anticipated that by reducing the time required to make diagnoses, this kind of technology will continue to improve both patient outcomes and reduce burn out among clinical staff around the world.

What our report says: “Digital therapeutics (DTx) – the use of software-based medical interventions for the management of chronic conditions like diabetes and cardiovascular disease – make up a surging subset within Healthtech, with the market set to reach USD 11bn this year at a CAGR of ≈26%.”

Example deal: Mental health apps are a strong presence within the DTx space, though these have tended to be wellbeing-focused, helping users manage conditions such as anxiety, insomnia, stress and less extreme manifestations of depression. By contrast, CareLoop – a University of Manchester spinout which secured a USD 2.41m seed round in February – provides support to patients with serious mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and psychosis. Its platform uses daily check-ins and AI-powered predictive algorithms to help cut relapse events, reduce hospital admissions and empower patients to more effectively manage their conditions.

What our report says: “The longevity space is rapidly expanding as life expectancy continues to rise – AI, biotech and regenerative medicine companies aim to reduce the widening gap between life- and health-span, with global investment in such businesses seeing a 220% year-on-year increase to USD 8.5bn in 2024.”

Example deal: Longevity is one of the buzziest terms in this sector right now, as more people are proactive about not just living longer, but living well for longer. In May, longevity-focused startup Geviti closed its USD 8.5m seed funding round, with the investment being used to grow its team and further develop its AI-powered health metric monitoring platform. The company is one of a new generation of subscription-based businesses catering to consumers looking to pre-empt potential conditions and increase their health-span by way of automated bloodwork, customised supplement protocols and in-app medical consultations.

What our report says: “Augmented and virtual reality (AR & VR) tools are being increasingly used to improve clinical training and patient outcomes, with highly realistic simulations being used to train surgeons, nurses and other clinicians in a cost-effective way; research has shown AR training sessions boosts accuracy, time efficiency and error reduction among participants to a considerable degree.”

Example deal: With AR & VR increasingly used as part of surgery, rehabilitation and mental health therapies as well as during training, it’s unsurprising that investors are digging deep to back innovators in this field. A key investment took place in March, when Stroll, a software company which has created augmented reality therapeutic solutions for patients with neurological disorders, closed a USD14.3m Series A round. 

Stroll integrates its digital content with off-the-shelf AR glasses, allowing people with disorders such as Parkinson’s and multiple sclerosis to undergo interactive, gamified therapies both in clinical and domestic settings, improving their mobility while alleviating pressures on medical staff.

Are you a founder or senior executive active in Healthtech and -care, and planning for an exit, or even looking to invest or acquire in this space? Reach out to Hampleton Partners managing director and Healthtech expert Tom Schmähling to discuss your business and discover the opportunities presented by the bullish market.

You can also download all of our half-yearly M&A market reports which explore transaction statistics, valuation trends and pivotal deals within sectors ranging from Healthtech to Enterprise Software to Autotech & Mobility. Subscribe to ensure you never miss out on the latest research and insights from the team of expert analysts at Hampleton Partners.