Day TwoWednesday, 25 March 2026 - Western European Summer Time (WEST)

As the medtech sector faces sustained funding challenges, early-stage companies must adopt innovative approaches to secure investment. This panel brings together seasoned investors and successful founders to dissect the current funding landscape, which has seen significant contraction since the early 2020s boom period. With venture capital becoming increasingly selective and investors demanding stronger evidence of commercial viability earlier in the development cycle, medtech entrepreneurs need strategic guidance more than ever.

• Strategies to overcome funding contraction in the medtech sector amid tightening economic conditions and shifting investor priorities
• How leading VCs are assessing investment cases in today's risk-averse climate
• Practical approaches to attract investor interest despite market headwinds, including alternative funding sources and strategic partnerships

For many medtech startups, partnerships with established industry players represent a critical pathway to accessing resources, distribution channels, and specialized expertise. Join business development leaders and key partnerships stakeholders as they examine when and how emerging companies should pursue such relationships, and what makes them successful for both parties. Drawing on real-world examples of both successful and failed partnerships, the discussion will provide practical guidance on partnership models ranging from distribution agreements to co-development arrangements and eventual acquisition options. Understanding how large medtech companies evaluate potential partners, and what they truly value beyond technology, is essential for startups seeking to structure advantageous relationships that accelerate their growth while preserving their core value.

• Insights from corporate development teams on how they evaluate potential partners
• Types of partnerships available to emerging medtech companies at different development stages
• Assessment criteria beyond the technology itself

The digital revolution has well and truly reached Pharma. Some pharmaceutical companies are at the forefront of digital transformation, using innovative technology to accelerate drug discovery, boost patient adherence and drive better outcomes. This panel examines how leading pharma companies are adapting to the digital revolution, their implementation strategies, and lessons that can be learned from their successes and challenges.

• Which companies are leading the way in adapting to digital transformation
• How industry leaders are implementing digital strategies
• Best practices and lessons learned from digital pioneers

Building New Bridges: Creating Win-Win Collaborations in Pharmatech The pharmaceutical industry is witnessing a transformation in how partnerships are formed and maintained. Traditional collaboration models are evolving to create more mutually beneficial relationships between startups, established pharmaceutical companies, and health systems. These new partnership models are driving innovation while distributing risk and maximizing resources across the ecosystem.

• Building effective coalitions between startups, pharma, and government organizations
• Case studies of successful non-traditional partnerships
• Strategies for creating sustainable win-win collaborations in the pharmatech space

The biotech investment landscape in 2026 is marked by heightened scrutiny and selectivity as sector-wide headwinds continue to challenge traditional funding strategies. Investors are increasingly focused on identifying high-potential opportunities while navigating a complex environment of risk and reward. This panel will delve into the strategies employed by leading venture capitalists and crossover funds to allocate capital effectively, shedding light on the therapeutic areas and modalities that are gaining traction versus those facing realignment.

• Which therapeutic areas and modalities are attracting capital vs. facing scepticism?
• How are investors balancing risk between early-stage vs. late-stage opportunities?
• What red flags are causing investors to pass on otherwise promising companies?

Southern Europe is rapidly evolving into a fertile ground for biotech innovation, with dynamic ecosystems emerging in Portugal, Italy, Spain, and France. This panel explores the unique advantages of these hubs, from access to talent and supportive public funding to new private capital flows. Investors and ecosystem leaders will dissect what makes the region attractive, what challenges remain, and where the next breakout companies are likely to emerge.

• The evolution of biotech ecosystems in Southern Europe
• What makes Southern Europe attractive to international investors?
• Role of public-private partnerships in regional development
• Perspectives from VC firms active in the region

How can early-stage biotechs build commercial value from the very beginning? This panel will explore the importance of embedding market insights into R&D decisions long before Phase 3, helping companies attract partners and investors. Panelists will discuss practical strategies for preclinical and Phase 1 companies to gather feedback from payers, physicians, and patients, as well as the most effective low-cost market research tools, such as KOL interviews and analog analyses. The conversation will also address when to hire the first commercial leader and what expertise and profile best complement an early-stage team, ensuring a strong foundation for long-term success.

• How can preclinical/Phase 1 companies start gathering payer, physician, and patient feedback?
• What low-cost market research tools (e.g., KOL interviews, analog analyses) are most effective?
• When should you hire your first commercial leader, and what profile fits an early-stage team?

The regulatory landscape for medical devices continues to evolve on both sides of the Atlantic, creating complex strategic decisions for companies planning their development and commercialization pathways. This discussion examines the ongoing implementation challenges of the European Medical Device Regulation (MDR), which has fundamentally altered the time, cost, and evidence requirements for CE marking. In parallel, the discussion will explore how FDA pathways are evolving, with particular attention to the comparative advantages and disadvantages each regulatory approach offers to different device categories. With notified body capacity constraints in Europe and changing FDA program priorities, companies must carefully consider their regulatory strategy from the earliest development stages.

• Comparing regulatory pathways and their impact on commercialization strategy, including timeline implications, evidence requirements, and resource demands
• Evolving regulatory landscape insights on MDR implementation realities and FDA program developments
• The role of regulatory strategy on market access and leveraging regulatory precedents

The surgical robotics landscape is undergoing a profound transformation as the market moves beyond the pioneering era dominated by a single player. This timely analysis examines how new entrants are challenging established platforms through specialized applications, improved economics, and novel technical approaches. With hospital systems increasingly open to adopting multiple robotic platforms for different procedures, opportunities are emerging for focused innovations that address specific surgical needs. The panel will explore how market dynamics are evolving as competition intensifies and healthcare providers become more sophisticated in their evaluation of robotic surgery's clinical and economic benefits.

• Competitive landscape analysis examining the strategies of emerging challengers across different surgical specialties
• Niche application strategies enabling smaller robotics companies to gain market traction through procedure-specific innovations and economic value propositions
• How Europe compares to the US when it comes to surgical robotics readiness

Significant differences exist between European and American markets in digital health adoption. This panel examines cultural factors affecting technology usage and trust, demographic influences on adoption rates, and strategic considerations for digital health launches. Understanding these regional differences is crucial for companies planning global digital health initiatives.

• Cultural and demographic differences in usage and trust
• Strategies for successful market entry in the US
• Strategic considerations for where best to launch digital health solutions

Digital technologies can significantly enhance traditional pharmaceutical therapies by improving outcomes and usage. Join our panel of pharma leaders and investors to hear how technological solutions can complement conventional medicines, with a particular focus on mobile applications and other digital companions to traditional treatments.

• How tech can supplement traditional therapies to benefit patients
• The role of mobile applications in supporting medication adherence
• The value in developing effective digital companions for pharmaceutical products

The biotech financing landscape is experiencing a notable shift, with private funding showing resilience while public markets continue to face challenges. This panel will explore the contrasting dynamics between private and public financing, focusing on why venture capitalists and crossover investors are increasingly favoring private rounds over public market exits. It will also provide insights into how early-stage biotechs can strategically position themselves to attract private capital in a competitive environment. Additionally, the discussion will address the long-term implications of the private market’s dominance on biotech innovation, exit strategies, and the broader industry ecosystem.

• Why are VCs and crossovers favouring private rounds over public market exits?
• How can early-stage biotechs position themselves to attract private capital in a competitive landscape?
• What are the long-term implications of the private market’s dominance for biotech innovation and exits?

With the biotech investment landscape has becoming increasingly selective, and tightened criteria reshaping how venture capitalists evaluate opportunities, this panel will provide a rare glimpse into the minds of leading investors, exploring how due diligence processes have evolved in response to market challenges. Attendees will gain insights into the key metrics that matter most in Series A and B pitches, from scientific innovation to market potential. The discussion will also uncover the top three factors that drive investors to say "yes" in 2026, offering actionable advice for biotech companies seeking to secure funding in a competitive and rapidly changing environment.

• How has due diligence changed in the current environment?
• What metrics matter most in Series A/B pitches today?
• The 3 things that make investors say "yes" in 2026

As oncology continues to evolve, where do the next big opportunities lie in this ever-growing market? This panel will examine the future of cancer treatment beyond checkpoint inhibitors, focusing on next-generation immuno-oncology therapies, antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), and personalized approaches. Panelists will discuss novel mechanisms like T-cell engagers, cancer vaccines, and dual-targeting ADCs with blockbuster potential, highlighting the innovations that could shape the next era of oncology therapeutics.

• What novel mechanisms (e.g., T-cell engagers, cancer vaccines, dual-targeting ADCs) have blockbuster potential?
• How can smaller biotechs compete in a space increasingly dominated by big pharma?
• What pricing and market-access challenges will emerging oncology therapies face?

Navigating pricing and market access for novel modalities like cell and gene therapies or RNA-based drugs requires strategic foresight. This panel will explore how early-stage companies can design clinical trials with endpoints that align with payer expectations, ensuring smoother reimbursement pathways. Panelists will address common misconceptions about pricing for one-time versus chronic therapies and discuss the importance of engaging with health technology assessment (HTA) bodies well before Phase 3. Attendees will gain actionable insights into overcoming the unique challenges these groundbreaking therapies face in achieving commercial success.

• How can early-stage companies design trials with endpoints that payers will accept?
• What are the biggest misconceptions about pricing for one-time vs. chronic therapies?
• How should you engage with HTAs before Phase 3?

Changing global healthcare dynamics are creating compelling opportunities in global markets. Join our panel of investors and medtech executives as they explore how European medtech companies can develop successful commercialization strategies for emerging markets that may offer less competition, faster regulatory pathways, and significant unmet needs. As healthcare infrastructure develops rapidly across Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia, first-mover advantages await companies willing to adapt their business models to these diverse environments.

• Opportunities in emerging markets where healthcare spending is growing rapidly and local competition may be less intense
• Revenue generation strategies in non-traditional markets, including innovative pricing models, distribution partnerships, and technology adaptation
• Building successful market entry plans that account for regional regulatory differences, reimbursement landscapes, and cultural factors

After decades of underinvestment, women's health technology is getting the attention it deserves as investors and corporations recognize both the unmet needs and market opportunities in this space. Our panel moves beyond the initial wave of fertility and period tracking apps to explore the emerging landscape of medical devices specifically addressing women's health conditions across the lifespan. From innovations in minimally invasive gynaecological procedures to diagnostic advances for conditions that disproportionately affect women, the field is seeing unprecedented innovation activity. The discussion will examine how changing demographics, increasing women's economic power, and greater recognition of gender-specific health needs are creating commercial opportunities and investment cases for new women’s health technologies.

• Medical device innovation transforming areas including maternal health monitoring, gynaecological surgery, and female-specific diagnostics
• Market dynamics and growing corporate and investor interest in women's health solutions after years of underinvestment and limited innovation
• Emerging focus areas where the greatest unmet needs and commercial opportunities intersect

Digital technologies are revolutionizing clinical trial processes from recruitment through completion. This panel of experts explore how digital solutions improve participant recruitment, monitoring, data consolidation, and treatment adherence. These innovations are making trials more efficient, cost-effective, and patient-centred.

• Digital benefits in recruitment, monitoring, data consolidation, adherence
• Technologies improving patient experience in clinical trials
• Overcoming implementation challenges in digital clinical trial management

Successful AI implementation in pharmaceutical settings requires much more than just advanced technology. This panel explores why technology is not the be all and end all of successful AI implementation, with organizational and behavioural factors playing a key role in the success or failure of adopted technology. Strategies for effective workflow integration and staff adaptation are critical for realizing AI's full potential.

• Why technology is just the start of successful AI implementation
• Strategies for workflow integration and staff retraining
• Addressing behavioural change in pharmaceutical organizations

The medtech acquisition environment continues to evolve as large strategics reassess their portfolio priorities and new types of buyers emerge. Our panel discuss current exit opportunities against the backdrop of changing corporate strategies, private equity interest, and public market conditions. With traditional acquisition timelines lengthening and due diligence becoming more rigorous, companies must understand how to position themselves as attractive targets in this buyer's market. The discussion will also touch on the potential revival of the IPO pathway as market conditions potentially improve.

• Understanding current acquisition priorities of major corporations as they respond to healthcare delivery changes and economic pressures
• How BD teams assess companies for acquisition, and how to get on their radar
• IPO considerations in the changing financial landscape

A period of oversized funding rounds and inflated valuations has given way to a more measured approach to medtech financing. This timely discussion examines how companies can structure appropriate funding strategies that balance growth ambitions with market realities. As investors increasingly favour capital efficiency over rapid scaling, founders must recalibrate their expectations and funding roadmaps. The panel will explore how successful companies are adapting to this new normal by focusing on milestone-based financing and strategic resource allocation.

• Balancing growth ambitions with realistic company valuations in a market that increasingly scrutinizes burn rates and path to profitability
• The strategic shift toward smaller, more focused rounds with fewer investors and how this changes company development timelines
• Creating sustainable funding roadmaps for medtech startups that align with achievable technical and commercial milestones

The pharmaceutical research landscape is undergoing a profound transformation through artificial intelligence, machine learning, and digital twin technologies. These advanced computational approaches are revolutionizing how researchers analyse scientific literature, identify potential drug candidates, and accelerate the development pipeline. This panel explores the cutting-edge applications of these technologies in modernizing drug discovery and development processes.

• How AI/ML technologies are enhancing literature analysis and knowledge extraction
• Applications of digital twins in modelling drug interactions and predicting outcomes
• Impact of computational approaches on reducing time-to-market for new therapies
• Balancing technological innovation with scientific rigor in drug development

Venture capital plays a crucial role in accelerating innovation within the life sciences, and pharmatech is no different. Our panel of investors examine how VCs are driving digital transformation in the pharmaceutical industry, funding strategies specifically for AI-focused startups, and approaches to balance immediate returns with long-term value creation.

• The role of VC in driving innovation in pharmatech
• Funding strategies for AI-focused pharma startups
• Balancing short-term wins with long-term value creation