Femtech drives women empowerment and global market

Femtech (female technology) is a budding fresh industry that has awakened the world to the growing presence of the female workforce in the health-tech domain. It is playing a critical role in developing technologically innovative healthcare solutions for women.

The term Femtech was coined by Ida Tin, who is the founder of period tracking app Clue. She was frustrated over the fact that while there were entire areas dedicated to groups such as FinTech and GreenTech, products that supported female health were dispersed around the exhibition hall looking lost and out of place. “I knew immediately that for these products to be taken seriously, the market needed to be defined, so I suggested that we should begin to call ourselves a FemTech company.” It definitively refers to software, diagnostics, products and services that use technology to cater to the needs of women’s health.

“Names are very powerful tools and by defining femtech, and making the decision to refer to Clue as a femtech company, we legitimized the market and made female health more comfortable to talk about.” Tin says this helped pave the way for events such as femtech conferences and for venture capital firms to increasingly invest in technologies aimed specifically at women.

And thanks to femtech, the industry is opening up the traditionally male-dominated tech job market to female entrepreneurs, developers, coders and makers. Besides the conventional tech jobs, femtech companies are also seeking medical professionals and those with a background in health sciences, particularly women’s reproductive and sexual health. Moreover, the digital-health industry has taken the tech world by storm. Health tech behemoths such as Fitbit and Apple are beginning to wake up to the importance of women’s wellness.

According to PitchBook data, the number of femtech start-ups globally has increased from 221 in 2019 to 318 in 2020, and in 2019, the femtech industry generated $820.6 million in global revenue and received $592 million in venture capital investment. It has to be noted that most of the femtech start-ups are from North America and Europe. In 2021, there are only 41 femtech companies in Southeast Asia, this is a very small portion compared to the 318 global femtech companies in 2020.

Forbes, in its report stated that although deeply in need of femtech, Southeast Asia’s development in this area is lagging behind compared with the West. When entrepreneurs develop femtech products or services in Southeast Asia, they need to consider the dominant of its population and its current development situation of femtech so as to better serve the underserved women in this region. Southeast Asia still has large, underserved women population at the bottom of the economic pyramid, which opens big opportunities for femtech entrepreneurs.

Top 5 Femtech companies to lookout for

Nature Cycles

This is a Stockholm-based company with a mission to enhance women’s health by monitoring contraceptive issues through its app.

The AI algorithm behind this digital technology acts as a guide to couples by analyzing temperature of a body with consideration such as sperm survival, variations in cycle length, detecting fertile and non-fertile days, temperature fluctuations and much more.

Syrona Women

This is popular femtech start-up in London. It aims to help women monitor various kinds of health issues at home with a minimum subscription package. The company encourages women to monitor their health on their own with the use of smart digital technology on a regular basis.

SORA, its newly launched mobile app tracks and monitors health issues regarding endometriosis that grant patients access to in-depth doctor insights.

Inne

This Berlin-based biotech start-up urges to push the boundaries of science and technology to promote women empowerment. Inne has produced the first-ever fertility and ovulation issues with maximum flexibility.

Its smartapp – Reader App can be connected through a Bluetooth or wi-fi for updated real-time information

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Elvie

This US-based start-up provides two new modern solutions for efficient breastfeeding for mothers. It manufactures the world’s first silent wearable breast pumps such as Elvie pump, Elvie curve, Elvie catch and Elvie trainer for new mothers.

Elvie has world-class design expertise to transform the lives of new mothers through digital technology.

Mobile ODT

This is the only company that brings the power of artificial intelligence (AI) into cervical cancer screening, while supporting the WHO strategic mission to eliminate cervical cancer till 2050.

Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer affecting women globally and the second most common cancer for women in low resource settings. Mobile ODT aims to improve access to expert care with EVA system.