FUTURE OF HEALTH
How pharma’s big bets on digital are changing
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Fifteen years ago, Apple released the first iPhone — to mixed reviews. True believers praised its elegance, suggesting that humanity’s relationship with technology would be forever altered. More tempered critique questioned the bold departure from consumer-accepted form factors such as a physical keyboard. Microsoft’s CEO mocked its price point. The iPhone was the proverbial “shiny object” — curious, unapologetically different, and new. While the iPhone only represents a small portion of global smartphone units sold today, Apple’s ability to enter — and dramatically shape — the consumer electronics space has become the North Star for nearly every industry seeking to capture additional value in the connected age.
For the broader health ecosystem, this digital turning point accelerated the pursuit of digital solutions with the promise to increase adherence, support disease management, or create a new class of therapeutics that didn’t require a molecule at all. In short order, pharma established new teams, new theses, and new partnerships.
Fast forward to the present: Rock Health reported that $29.1 billion was invested in digital health in 2021 — almost double that of 2020. For Rock Health, this surge was indicative of the long-awaited evolution of healthcare; the firm cited new infrastructure, business models, and talent that would be required to close the gap between the promise of digital health and the near-term reality.
But in recent years, pharma appears to be reconsidering its role in the “beyond-the-pill” ecosystem. Splashy deals and partnerships have turned heads, but there have also been messy public breakups. Of five Chief Digital Officers we interviewed in 2019, only one remains in their role.
After more than a decade of digital experimentation and experience, pharma is assessing its role in a maturing digital health ecosystem, how much it is investing, and to what end. In 2022, pharma no longer asks if it should pursue digital opportunities; the question is where and how it can have the greatest impact.
Earlier this year, Luminary Labs CEO Sara Holoubek interviewed digital health innovators, investors, and executives to see how pharma’s big bets on digital are changing as organizations learn important lessons and develop more precise investment theses. The full story, originally published in MM+M Magazine, is now available on the Luminary Labs website.
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