Introduction

The Pharmaceutical Digital Health Innovation Index 2024 assesses the Digital Health portfolios of pharmaceutical and biotech firms, with a focus on the strength of portfolio ventures as well as the alignment of portfolio ventures with strategic objectives. This year’s report comes at a pivotal moment in the evolution of digital health within the biopharma sector. What began as an era of experimentation—marked by pilots and innovation labs—has matured into a phase of strategic execution. The industry is no longer asking if digital health can deliver value; instead, the focus has shifted to how best to integrate and scale these technologies to drive measurable impact. To secure a place in the top 25, companies must have a global reach and at least 19 publicly announced partnerships with private Digital Health ventures.

Focus Areas of the Pharmaceutical Digital Health Innovation Index 2024

• Strength of Digital Health venture portfolios and their alignment with biopharma companies’ strategic goals.
• Analysis of how the industry has transitioned from experimental pilots to scalable strategic execution.
• Spotlight on artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI applications in drug discovery, clinical trials, and patient-centric innovations.
• Emphasis on partnerships that prioritize improving drug accessibility, patient adherence, and engagement.

Key insights from the report

• More biopharma companies are embracing digital health. In 2021, the top 25 biopharma companies held 57% of global digital health partnerships in the sector. By the end of 2024, this share has dropped to 42%, highlighting increased adoption by the broader ecosystem.
• Since 2020, 72% of digital health ventures partnering with biopharma have leveraged AI or generative AI, streamlining processes in drug discovery and clinical trials while enabling more personalised and efficient healthcare solutions. This trend emerged in 2023 and has continued through 2024.
• In 2024, Eli Lilly, Pfizer, and Astellas launched direct-to-patient platforms, combining telehealth, online pharmacies, and disease management to enhance medication access, adherence, and patient engagement. In 2024, more than 36% of global digital health partnerships were focused on patient-centric digital health clusters.

Why it matters

The Pharmaceutical Digital Health Innovation Index provides biopharma stakeholders with actionable insights into:

• Emerging trends in AI-driven healthcare solutions.
• The importance of aligning digital health initiatives with strategic business goals.
• The evolving role of partnerships in addressing unmet patient needs and advancing drug discovery.

The Pharmaceutical Digital Health Innovation Index 2024 showcases how digital health has transitioned from a nascent innovation ecosystem to a critical enabler of growth, efficiency, and impact for biopharma companies worldwide. As these firms continue to refine and expand their strategies, the future of healthcare promises even greater collaboration, patient-centricity, and technological integration.

This report is powered by HealthTech Alpha, the premier digital health intelligence platform delivering unparalleled data and insights into the evolving healthcare technology landscape. By leveraging its extensive database of over 14,000 ventures and cutting-edge analytics, HealthTech Alpha provides a data-driven foundation to analyze the critical trends and innovations shaping the future of medtech.

Designed to empower stakeholders—including investors, pharmaceutical leaders, and medical device manufacturers—HealthTech Alpha offers actionable intelligence to navigate the complexities of digital transformation in healthcare. This collaboration brings readers a comprehensive view of the intersection between digital health and medtech, equipping them with the insights needed to identify opportunities, assess market dynamics, and make strategic decisions in this rapidly advancing industry.