✨Hey there! You’re reading the free edition of the FemTech India newsletter — your go-to source for the latest in women’s health, industry updates, and opportunities to help you navigate what’s next in your journey.
Welcoming New Companies to FemTech India’s Thriving Ecosystem
Join a global network that drives cross-border partnerships and innovation in women’s health tech space. With extensive market expertise, we’ve supported 20+ companies from Series A startups to unicorns and have 200+ companies onboard across 12+ geographies, contributing to the growth of global economies in women’s health, life sciences, biotech, and related sectors.
At FemTech India, we continuously push digital boundaries. Powered by our diverse teams, deep domain expertise, and a collaborative mindset, we are your trusted partner , bringing together the best people, processes, and strategies to turn challenges into breakthrough products.
OpenAI Targets Healthcare with HealthBench
OpenAI is advancing healthcare by developing large language models aimed at expanding access to health information, supporting clinicians, and empowering communities. Recognizing the need for reliable and safe AI, OpenAI has introduced HealthBench—a new benchmark created with 262 physicians across 60 countries, featuring 5,000 realistic health conversations and expert grading rubrics.
HealthBench aims to provide meaningful, trustworthy, and unsaturated evaluations that mirror real-world healthcare scenarios and physician judgment. This benchmark sets a higher standard for AI in health, encouraging continuous improvement. OpenAI also shares initial model performances, establishing a baseline to drive future progress in AI-driven healthcare solutions.
Founders spotlight : Co-founders of Miyara, Gayatri and Sanjana
Co-founders Gayatri and Sanjana, both expert scientists, launched Miyara to bridge the gap in women’s midlife and menopausal health. Combining their rich research backgrounds, they created India’s first AI-powered digital companion supporting women through menopause, addressing a critical but overlooked health need.
Since 2022, Miyara has empowered 10,000+ women via personalized care, workshops, and corporate wellness programs breaking the silence around menopause and transforming women’s health in India.
What’s trending this week in women’s health :
India Funding:
- The Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Bhopal has been awarded four high-impact research projects under the Government of India’s flagship Partnerships for Accelerated Innovation and Research (PAIR) program. The program offers a cumulative research grant of INR 100 crores.
- Healthtech startup Avammune Therapeutics has secured $12 million (INR 100 Cr) in a Series A funding round. The round was co-led by Capital 2B, Shastra VC, and Kotak Alternate Asset Managers’ Life Sciences Fund I. IvyCap Ventures, 1Crowd, and other investors also participated.
- Karan Bajaj, Co-founder of BYJU’S-owned WhiteHat Jr, has brought out his next venture, Complement 1, from stealth. The healthtech startup, focused on cancer care through personalised lifestyle medicine, has raised $16 million in a seed funding round led by Owl Ventures and Blume Ventures.
Global Funding:
- Hims & Hers raised $1B, one of their largest funding rounds to date—more than doubling their target, driven by strong demand from top global investors.
- Mentaily, Israel-based creator of AI-powered tools for mental health assessment, triage, and diagnosis of mental disorders, closed a $3m seed funding round. The round was led by a US-based family office and Israeli family offices, with participation from impact funds The Rashi Foundation and Sheatufim, and prominent digital health angel investors.
- Nortian, a Kansas City, KS-based biotech company, raised $41M in funding, at a $100M valuation. The round was led by AJ Hollander, Hubbard Ingredients, XPTO, and family offices from Texas and the Midwest.
- Cohere Health, a Boston, MA-based provider of clinical intelligence solutions for health plans and risk-bearing providers, raised $90M in Series C funding.
- OrganOx, an Oxford, UK-based commercial stage organ technology company, raised an undisclosed amount in funding.
- Eligo Bioscience, a Paris, France-based biotechnology company pioneering the development of novel genetic medicines, received a $5M grant from the French government.
- InBrain Pharma, a Lille, France-based clinical stage biotechnology company which specializes in therapeutic solution development against neurodegenerative diseases, raised €1.8M in funding.
- Chipiron, a Paris, France-based diagnostic imaging startup, raised $17m in Series A funding. The round was led by Blast, with participation from France2030, iXcore, EIC Fund, EIC Accelerator, and Bpifrance.
- SafeHeal, a Paris, France- and Tampa, FL-based colorectal cancer surgery company, raised €35M in Series C equity funding. The round was led by Solar Eclipse with new investors Gideon Strategic Partners and M&L Healthcare, part of M&L Group, and returning investors Sofinnova Partners.
- Poppins, a Paris, France-based neurotech startup, raised €5M in funding.
Innovations:
- Fitbit Labs, a brainchild of tech giant Google, has recently announced three new AI features for its users. These Google Gemini AI-powered features help users better understand their health and gain personalized insights.
- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is accelerating efforts to incorporate artificial intelligence (AI) into its internal operations, with plans for full-scale deployment across all centers by June 30.
- Biotechnology startup Bioheaven360 Genotec has partnered with the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, to launch an advanced AI-enabled health platform.
📢 NEWS:
- Men are more likely to die of ‘broken heart syndrome,’ study says. The study analyzed data from nearly 200,000 adults in the U.S. who were hospitalized with broken heart syndrome from 2016 to 2020. Around 11% of men in that group died, compared with roughly 5% of women. The data reinforce previous studies that showed higher mortality rates in men.
- How your genes interact with your environment changes your disease risk − new research counts the ways. . Mutations across the entire genome seem to play a role in diseases such as Type 2 diabetes, which is about 17% heritable, and schizophrenia, which is about 80% heritable.
- As human-induced climate change continues warming the planet, pregnancy risks are increasing, according to a new analysis by Climate Central.
- Researchers uncovered hundreds of genes linked to OCD, providing clues about how it changes the brain − new research. Obsessive compulsive disorder is one of the most impairing illnesses worldwide. Affecting about 1 in 50 people globally, OCD is among the top 10 causes of years lost to disability, leading to harmful effects on a person’s ability to work and function in the world and on their family.
- A recent report by the International Diabetes Federation shared some alarming findings on the condition. The report stated that globally 589 million people are living with diabetes, which is nearly one in nine adults. Among them, around 252 million are unaware of being diagnosed with the condition. This puts them at a higher risk of developing complications and can even lead to early death. It is also a dangerous situation for the individuals as the window period to mitigate any complications would have ended before any preventive measures could be taken.
- Researchers, including experts from the University of Navarra, published a study which explored the link between a Mediterranean per diem expense diet with the incidence of obesity-related cancers. The study which was published in JAMA Network Open published the findings which linked the diet with a 6 per cent reduction in the risk of developing obesity-related cancers.
- Easing period cramps: Expert advise simple and effective ways to relieve pain. By exploring different ways, women can find what works best for them to manage period cramps and regain comfort during their menstrual period.
- A study which surveyed over 1000 mother-infant pairs in Australia suggests that less or poor quality sleep in babies could be a risk of autism. The findings of the study, which is published in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood, suggest that an increase in night-time sleep by an hour by six months of age was related to fewer autism characteristics at ages two and four.
- 55% of senior leadership positions in health ministry held by women | WHO report. The 2020 State of the World’s Nursing Report stated that only one-by-fourth of the leadership positions across health and care were being held by women
- Triggered, OCD, gaslighting: The impact of misusing mental health terms. Misuse of serious mental health terms can do more harm than good to people who are genuinely affected and can invalidate their struggles
- Why are US health officials advising against chikungunya vaccine for the elderly?France’s Departments of La Reunion and Mayotte have reported chikungunya outbreaks
- Obesity linked to persistent brain and mental health symptoms in long Covid patients. Although the World Health Organisation declared an end to Covid-19 as a global health emergency in May 2023, long Covid continues to haunt many.
- How India achieved a significant decline in maternal and child mortality rates. A recent report, published by the Registrar General of India, also revealed that eight countries attained the target of MMR by 2030
🌐 Global Companies:
- Redcliffe Labs has launched a diagnostic platform, Femcliffe, aimed at addressing women’s health needs across various life stages. Available through its nationwide network of labs and collection centres, Femcliffe supports online booking and home sample collection.
- Yashoda Medicity announced the installation of the Elekta Unity MR Linac system, marking the first deployment in India of a radiation therapy platform integrated with Comprehensive Motion Management (CMM).
- Fitterfly, a healthtech startup specializing in digital therapeutics for metabolic conditions, has recently launched the Nutrition 360 Suite, claimed as India’s most advanced nutrition tracking solution.
- API Holdings and the parent company of the entities owning leading brands such as PharmEasy, Thyrocare, and Retailio, has collaborated with IBM to harness the power of AI-driven automated observability to proactively manage their application stack using IBM Instana. This has enabled API to deliver seamless healthcare services to customers while accelerating time-to-market for new services.
- Biovet, a subsidiary of Bharat Biotech launched the indigenous lumpy skin disease (LSD) vaccine Biolumpivaxin. The vaccine was unveiled by Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh N Chandrababu Naidu at the Livestock Prosperity Conclave, Vijayawada.
- GSK plc and Boston Pharmaceuticals, a leading clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing highly targeted therapies for patients with serious liver diseases, announced that they have entered into an agreement under which GSK will acquire Boston Pharmaceuticals’ lead asset, efimosfermin alfa. Efimosfermin is a phase III-ready, potential best-in-class, investigational specialty medicine to treat and prevent progression of steatotic liver disease (SLD).
Government News:
- Health Minister Pankaj Singh announced that the Delhi government will implement a unified health management information system (HMIS) across all state-run hospitals, a major step towards digital transformation in public healthcare.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting to review the progress of India’s National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEP). The meeting reaffirmed the country’s commitment to eradicating tuberculosis (TB) by 2025, five years ahead of the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) deadline.
- The Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil) has announced that it has received a formal communication from the Embassy of India in Santiago, Chile, regarding the Central Supply of the National Health System of Chile (CENABAST) seeking procurement of specific medicines from Indian manufacturers.
☀️ Stories we’re following this week!
📳 – Quick Reads:
- Everything you need to know about the painful pilonidal sinus affecting the youth: A growing incidence of pilonidal sinus cysts, causing pain and discomfort, has been observed among youth in recent times.
- Are your muscle-building supplements harming your hips?
Experts have raised serious health concerns by stating the misuse and unsupervised use of protein powders and steroids by youngsters.
🎉Have news to share? Publish a press release on FemTech India to reach industry-leading executives, investors, and passionate individuals.
See you next Friday, friends 👋
Navneet
[Sign up here to never miss on the latest updates.]