Health Tech will be the Next Big Thing

Every era has its defining companies.

The ones that dominate global markets and shape entire industries. Oil giants ruled the 20th century, tech giants like Apple and Amazon shaped the 21st.

But looking ahead, I believe the biggest company in the world won’t be a software or e-commerce player. It’ll be a health tech company.

Tech’s biggest players already see the writing on the wall. Apple’s wearables are making serious money, Amazon has its sights set on pharmacy and primary care, and Google’s AI research in healthcare is nothing short of revolutionary. But they’re only scratching the surface. Healthcare is still one of the most broken, inefficient, and expensive industries in the world, and it’s ripe for disruption.

The companies that helps fix it will be bigger than anything we’ve seen before.

😴 Healthcare Is a Trillion-Dollar Sleeping Giant

Here’s the big picture:

• The global healthcare industry is worth over $12 trillion (as of 2024), making it one of the largest sectors in the world.

• The health tech market, which includes AI, wearables, and digital health, is set to hit $900 billion by 2030.

• The U.S. alone spends $4.5 trillion a year on healthcare, almost 20% of their GDP.

• An aging global population means demand for healthcare will only increase, placing pressure on systems that are already inefficient and overburdened.

🥭Why Healthcare Is Ripe for Disruption

Healthcare remains one of the least digitized and most inefficient industries in the world. Despite its size, it lags behind other sectors in innovation and customer experience. Here are the key problems:

1. It’s too expensive: The U.S. healthcare system is notorious for its astronomical costs. The lack of price transparency, inefficiencies, and administrative bloat drive up expenses.

2. Access is a nightmare: Over 3.5 billion people globally lack access to basic healthcare services, creating an opportunity for tech-driven solutions to bridge the gap.

3. It’s wildly inefficient: Electronic health records (EHRs) are still fragmented, making seamless care coordination difficult.

4. It’s slow to adopt new tech: Unlike fintech or e-commerce, healthcare has been slow to adopt AI, automation, and data-driven efficiencies.

Each of these problems represents a multi-billion-dollar opportunity for a company that can leverage technology to improve care while reducing costs.

🏁 Tech Is Already Changing Healthcare. But It’s Just the Start

Several breakthrough technologies are already reshaping healthcare, setting the foundation for a future trillion-dollar health tech company.

1. AI & Machine Learning

   • AI models are now outperforming doctors in diagnostics, particularly in fields like radiology and pathology.

   • Companies like DeepMind, Tempus, and PathAI are pioneering AI-driven disease detection and treatment recommendations.

2. Wearables & Remote Monitoring

   • Apple Watch and Fitbit are just the beginning. Continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) and AI-driven wearables are transforming chronic disease management.

   • Future iterations could act as always-on, real-time health dashboards, reducing hospital visits and catching diseases early.

3. Telemedicine & Virtual Care

   • Telehealth exploded during COVID-19, proving that virtual care is not only viable but preferred by many patients.

   • Companies like Teladoc and Amwell have led the charge, but the real disruption will come from AI-driven, on-demand virtual doctors.

4. Biotech & Precision Medicine

   • Personalized medicine, driven by genomics, is moving from the research lab to mainstream clinical applications.

   • Companies like Illumina, 23andMe, and Ginkgo Bioworks are paving the way for customized treatments based on an individual’s DNA.

5. Healthcare Infrastructure & Automation

   • The biggest inefficiencies in healthcare come from administrative waste and bureaucracy.

   • AI-powered claims processing, automated scheduling, and digital-first hospitals (like those being pioneered in China) will revolutionize healthcare delivery.

🏃‍♂️Who’s Leading the Charge?

Right now, there are several companies vying to become the dominant player in health tech:

1. Apple – With its push into wearables, digital health, and health records integration, Apple is positioning itself as the “consumer health platform of the future.”

2. Amazon – After acquiring PillPack and launching Amazon Pharmacy, Amazon is eyeing the trillion-dollar pharmaceutical market.

3. Google (Alphabet) – Through Verily and DeepMind, Google is investing heavily in AI-driven healthcare solutions and clinical research.

4. Startups & Innovators – Companies like Ro (direct-to-consumer health), Tempus (AI-driven diagnostics), and Devoted Health (AI-powered insurance) are rising challengers.

5. Biotech & Pharma Giants – Moderna, Illumina, and new AI-driven drug discovery startups could redefine pharma and diagnostics.

One of these companies, or an emerging startup, will one day take down the current laggards of healthcare.

❤️ Why Investors Should Care

For Investors, I believe health tech presents one of the largest, most lucrative opportunities of the next decade:

It’s a given there is a large addressable market for health tech is far larger than SaaS, fintech, or e-commerce. I also believe there is a technological convergence, where AI, wearables, biotech, and cloud computing are all converging to make healthcare tech more scalable and impactful than ever.

And even with the the shift toward direct-to-consumer models (DTC health, telemedicine, digital prescriptions), this will create new billion-dollar opportunities for startups.

The one thing to bear in mind however is health tech companies typically face high barriers to entry. So companies need to navigate systems and regulatory complexities more than players in other industries. But well funded companies, with the right experience and network and strong execution can overcome these and face less competition over time.

🩺 It’s Inevitable

The biggest company in the world today, Apple, did not emerge from an old industry but created a new category.

The same will happen in health tech.

The company that cracks the code on scalable, tech-driven healthcare will not only be the most valuable business in history but will fundamentally change how humanity experiences health and longevity.

I believe for investors, the opportunity is clear: the trillion-dollar health tech giant of the future is being built right now.

The only question is: who will it be?