Ireland’s first femtech report highlights opportunities in women’s health innovation.
A new report from Health Innovation Hub Ireland (HIHI) and University College Cork (UCC) outlines the potential for Ireland to become a global leader in FemTech – technology, research, and innovation focused on women’s health.
The report Femtech in Ireland: The Case for Prioritising Women’s Health Research and Innovation identifies opportunities to strengthen Ireland’s life sciences and technology sectors by supporting innovation in women’s health. It calls for increased investment, targeted research funding, and the creation of dedicated spaces for FemTech development.
“There is a real buzz in the FemTech innovation sector in Ireland today, with new ideas and start-ups being developed throughout the country”
The report finds that while Ireland has a strong foundation in medtech, digital health, and pharmaceuticals, FemTech remains underfunded. It notes that globally, the FemTech industry is projected to exceed €60bn by 2027, yet only a small portion of health research funding currently targets female-specific conditions.
Investing in women’s health is smart economics
Dr Tanya Mulcahy, Director of HIHI and founder of FemTech Ireland, said: “We need to invest in women’s health—not just for equality, but because it’s smart research, healthcare, and smart economics. There is a real buzz in the FemTech innovation sector in Ireland today, with new ideas and start-ups being developed throughout the country. We’ve supported many of them through HIHI, enabling access to clinicians, patients and researchers. It’s a sector that is attracting female founders, and provides a new avenue for young researchers, but it’s a sector that needs more support. This report is our call to action.”
The report is based on two years of work through FemTech@HIHI, Ireland’s first programme focused on supporting innovation in women’s health. Since its launch in 2022, the initiative has supported more than 30 Irish start-ups developing products ranging from wearable technology for menopause symptom tracking to devices for pelvic health and fertility.
Professor John R Higgins, Principal Investigator of HIHI and Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at UCC and Cork University Maternity Hospital, said: “In women’s health, a longstanding gap in research has meant that innovations have not always translated into meaningful solutions. This gap in evidence directly impacts the development of technologies. Now is the time to bridge that divide with focused funding, targeted research, and innovation supports.”
Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Peter Burke TD, welcomed the report. He said: “FemTech is an emerging sector with huge potential. Supporting research-driven innovation in this space aligns directly with Ireland’s ambitions to grow indigenous enterprise, attract investment and lead in global health innovation. Additionally, because FemTech attracts more female entrepreneurs, it partners with the Government’s objective to encourage, support and develop women in leadership and female entrepreneurship.”
Minister for Health Dr Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, TD, added: “This report is an important step toward better care for women across Ireland. It supports the work we’re already doing through the Women’s Health Taskforce and highlights how innovation can help us go even further.”
The report outlines several recommendations, including the establishment of dedicated FemTech funding calls, inclusion of sex and gender analysis in research design, and the creation of a national FemTech innovation space. It also highlights the economic potential of closing the women’s health gap, estimating a possible boost of $1 trillion annually to the global economy by 2040.
Heidi Davis, co-founder of Peri, a digital health start-up supported by FemTech@HIHI, said: “I am the co-founder of Peri, which aims to help women in perimenopause. Through a wearable tracker, we use AI technology to collect actionable insight and personalise management of symptoms. FemTech@HIHI has provided key supports and networks to develop our product, but we need to see more support at a national level, through more research funding, more investment and more recognition of the potential of FemTech innovation.”
Image at top: Minister for Health Dr Jennifer Carroll MacNeill and Dr Tanya Mulcahy
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