Q&A: How financial uncertainty might have an effect on femtech

Femtech has grown over the past decade, however investments in female-focused firms pale compared to the bigger digital well being sector. 

Ida Tin, cofounder and chairwoman at Clue, a Berlin-based menstrual well being app, coined the time period femtech in 2016 and joined MobiHealthNews to debate funding and development within the sector.

MobiHealthNews: How do you suppose the collapse of Silicon Valley Financial institution will have an effect on femtech?

Ida Tin: I believe there’s something form of normal to be stated about innovation, and particularly firms which are perhaps greater danger which have discovered investments, and possibly actually hard-earned funding cash. And I’d say I believe it is slightly bit like in struggle zones and catastrophe areas, like girls are at all times hit first and hardest. And I type of concern that it may very well be related right here as a result of it is exhausting to lift cash for femtech. I believe it is truthful to say. And the type of extra specialised funds which have emerged over the past years, they’re like peanuts-sized funds, sadly.

And I believe, simply typically, when all people will get extra nervous, we are likely to do extra of the recognized, and something that’s within the areas of one thing that might culturally be tougher or really feel extra new or unknown, then issues simply get tighter. However I’ll say, there may be additionally a robust type of counter-current taking place proper now, the place femtech and feminine well being, and well being typically, actually does have loads of curiosity and help. And I believe that can be just like the strongest present. There isn’t any means that girls are going to cease wanting to construct merchandise that clear up actual issues for them and for one another. So I am not afraid that femtech will form of endure an enormous blow.

MHN: What is going on on with Clue, and the way is it progressing?

Tin: We simply really rebuilt our entire codebase and relaunched the app. This was as a result of we’ve got loads of legacy code, and we wished to have the ability to construct issues a lot quicker. And that was not one thing that I believe customers will discover all that a lot. The app seems to be slightly bit completely different, however from form of behind the scenes, that was an enormous success.  

Now we have a being pregnant function now, we’ve got a enable you get pregnant function, and after you have given beginning. So serving to undergo the life phases extra seamlessly.  Now we have additionally been hit by the monetary “meh.” We had an enormous form of enterprise deal, enterprise debt financing that fell by due to macroeconomic issues. So we needed to let folks go, which is so unhappy as a result of we had constructed an incredible staff the final 12 months. In order that was simply unhealthy luck. Clue is doing nice, however exterior elements hit us like all people else.

MHN: How do you see femtech progressing sooner or later to learn girls’s well being?

Tin: There’s nonetheless a discovery problem. I believe, really, there are numerous new merchandise that most individuals will in all probability not have heard about. And I believe that is an indication of a really younger class nonetheless. 

There’s additionally loads of fragmentation on an information degree. We do not nonetheless have a spot or a strategy to actually leverage all the information that we’re creating. And I believe that is one thing that I hope will come quickly, in order that it is extra handy for customers to actually get extra full footage of their well being and higher navigate this tradition. 

I believe there’s nonetheless room for form of deeper tech, extra superior algorithms or dwelling diagnostics, […] higher sorts of contraception, or issues that type of take extra innovation, more cash to get to market. They’re on the best way, however there may be nonetheless some form of a leap that we are able to do technologically, I believe.

Emily Kwan will provide extra element at her HIMSS23 session “Implementing an AI NLP Instrument to Deal with SDOH Wants.” It’s scheduled for Tuesday, April 18, at 1: 30 p.m. – 2: 30 p.m. CT on the South Constructing, Stage 1, S105 C.