Healthcare & Life Sciences - Industry - Asia Pacific Market, Share and Trends 2023-2028

Summary of Healthcare & Life Sciences

The Asia-Pacific (APAC) healthcare market has experienced tremendous growth over the past decade, fueled by rising incomes, aging populations and increased health awareness. Total healthcare spending is expected to reach $2.3 trillion by 2025.

While market access and infrastructure challenges persist, especially in developing nations, healthcare innovation and investment has accelerated across APAC. Australia, China, Japan and Singapore have emerged as major regional hubs for biotech research and medical device development.

The Asia-Pacific’s Healthcare and Life Science market size was valued at $ 2484 billion in 2023 and is expected to expand at a CAGR of 6.70 % during the forecast period & reaching $ 3697.67 billion by 2029.

Venture funding into APAC health startups hit record highs in 2022, exceeding $17 billion. Digital health solutions attracted majority of deals— but oncology— medical AI and genomics companies also saw surging interest.

Telemedicine adoption has skyrocketed post-COVID, with virtual health platforms raising over $3.5 billion last year. Overall digital penetration in healthcare remains lower than Western markets, signaling substantial headroom for health tech disruption.

While near-term outlooks have dampened given China’s economic slowdown, APAC remains one of the most promising global regions for healthcare advancement this decade given strong fundamentals and technology leapfrogging opportunities.

Recent Trends and Insights

COVID-19 has led to an explosion of telehealth platforms connecting patients to providers remotely. Health tech funding hit all-time highs in 2022, attracting over $17 billion across startups focused on virtual care, mHealth apps, wearables and data analytics.

Growing prevalence of chronic illnesses like diabetes and heart disease coupled with rising cancer rates have prioritized biopharma innovation from APAC players, especially in genomics and immunotherapy. Australia and Singapore are global leaders in oncology research.

From predictive analytics to precision medicine, APAC has become a rising hub for healthcare AI innovation. Startups like Biofourmis and Qure.ai are attracting substantial funding, while China publishes the 2nd highest AI research after the US. Adoption however remains low indicating untapped potential.

APAC has birthed over 50 healthcare unicorns since 2020, with over 60% coming from China. Major success stories include DXY, WeDoctor, Yidu Tech, LinkDoc and New Horizon Health. This signals ample opportunities for startups to scale into large enterprises.

While market challenges persist, governments are prioritizing healthcare access and system strengthening, evident from Indonesia’s new universal coverage program and hospital construction expansion across India’s tier 2-3 cities. This is expanding the patient pool for health solutions.

Product Insights

Wysa from Singapore provides evidence-based cognitive behavioral therapy techniques over chat to help users build mental resilience, manage emotions and tackle depression/anxiety issues. Available across 90 countries in 50 languages, its AI aims to expand access to mental wellness support.

South Korea’s AEvice has created the first dedicated end-to-end platform for asthma patients comprising smart inhalers, mobile apps and data analytics dashboards. Its sensors track medication usage, environmental factors and symptoms to improve diagnosis and prevent attacks.

Headquartered in Australia – Atomo – has developed a proprietary testing platform using nanotechnology to enable rapid diagnosis of diseases from blood samples. Its kits can detect infections like malaria and COVID antigen faster, easier and cheaper than traditional methods, allowing expanded testing globally.

Based in India – PharmEasy – has become the dominant digital pharmacy providing home delivery of medicines while aggregating neighborhood pharmacies into a common platform. With over 15 million app downloads already, it aims to organize the fragmented pharmacy retail market across India.

Geneis from China— provides full-service genomic testing capabilities to hospitals and research partners. With its proprietary MGI sequencing platforms and advanced bioinformatics, it enables precision medicine approaches for cancer therapy and early disease detection nationwide.

Key Companies

Some major players within this vast domain of industry are

• Olympus
• Terumo
• Hoya
• Sonic Healthcare
• Nipro
• Shimadzu
• Sysmex
• Wysa
• Atomo
• PharmEasy

Regional Analysis

China is positioned to lead healthcare innovation in APAC with immense population scale, strong government support and rapid digital penetration. It already boasts the second largest medical device market and highest AI research globally.

Areas where China is focused on breakthroughs include: biotech, genomic medicines, MedTech and health informatics. China also has the world’s largest diabetes population, driving substantial demand for monitoring and care management solutions.

Japan commands the second largest healthcare market in the world given fast aging demographics and high life expectancies. With world-class infrastructure and advanced technologies, Japan has pioneered advancements in diagnostics, medical robotics and telehealth.

Market leaders like Terumo, Sysmex and Olympus enable rapid commercialization globally. The government also provides strong funding support for early and growth stage startups focused on areas like regenerative medicine.

With rising rates of chronic diseases, Japan’s aging society promises growing opportunities for health tech innovation to boost patient outcomes and system efficiency.

Australia has nurtured globally recognized capabilities in biopharma and medical technology innovation. It boasts renowned research hubs and has developed regulatory leadership in emerging areas like digital health solutions.

Australia has cultivated deep R&D expertise in oncology, genomics, and clinical informatics. The federal government has implemented favorable policies like the R&D Tax Incentive enabling startups to access crucial early funding.

Market Segmentation

By Type:

• Pharmaceuticals
• Medical Devices
• Healthcare IT
• Diagnostics
• Biotechnology

By End User:

• Hospitals and Clinics
• Research Laboratories
• Diagnostic Centers
• Others

By Enterprise Size:

• Large Enterprises
• SMEs

By Country:

• China
• India
• Japan
• Indonesia
• South Korea
• Australia

Our Methodology

We have offered a well-founded review of the regional Asia-Pacific healthcare and life sciences market along with ongoing trends and upcoming projections to highlight proximate investment opportunities in this report. Moreover, an extensive analysis of any future prospects, challenges, competitors, or navigating aspects is also provided. A methodical detailed regional examination is presented.

Primary Research  

Our multi-pronged research approach includes interviews with industry leaders and a global survey of advanced manufacturing professionals to gain qualitative insights. We utilize our proprietary databases encompassing key performance indicators worldwide in order to collate relevant data points. A multivariate forecasting framework considering historical performance, current dynamics and qualitative factors are utilized to develop market sizing and growth projections through 2029.

We supplement our primary research with a careful examination of secondary materials such as– case studies, news stories and references from other sources. Organizations can benefit from the strategic advice and conclusions offered because they will be better equipped to respond to the dynamic nature of this industry and seize emerging possibilities.

We employ a comprehensive and iterative research methodology focused on minimizing deviation to provide the most accurate market estimates. Our research utilizes a combination of bottom-up and top-down approaches across segments and utilizes databases, primary research insights and industry experts for analysis.

Raw data is obtained from multiple sources and thoroughly filtered to ensure only authenticated and validated sources are considered. We collect data from raw material suppliers, industry associations, technology providers, and buyers to gain a holistic perspective.

Quantitative Analysis

Our market estimates are derived through statistical models, beginning with collection of historical data and analysis of macro- and micro-economic factors influencing the market. Gathered information on market dynamics, technology and pricing trends are utilised to build the models.

Econometric and technological models are applied to project short- and long-term market potential respectively. A bottom-up approach is preferred to minimize errors. Key parameters considered include market drivers and restraints, material pricing trends, regulatory scenarios, and capacity additions.

Weights are assigned to these parameters based on impact analysis and market forecasting is performed via statistical tools and techniques. We believe this methodology results in an accurate and realistic market picture.