Health Tech Is No Longer Niche, These 33 Startups Signal Where Medicine Is Headed Next

The 33 health and wellness startups selected for TechCrunch’s Startup Battlefield 200 reveal a clear shift toward AI-driven diagnostics, noninvasive medical tools, and scalable care models designed to address workforce shortages and rising healthcare demand.

Each year, TechCrunch’s Startup Battlefield attracts thousands of applicants, but only 200 make the cut. From that group, 20 finalists pitch live for the Startup Battlefield Cup and a $100,000 prize. The remaining 180 are no consolation prize. In health and wellness alone, 33 startups stood out for tackling some of the most urgent problems in global healthcare, from surgical efficiency and caregiver shortages to early cancer detection and chronic disease monitoring.

What unites this year’s health-focused cohort is software-led efficiency paired with hardware restraint. Many of these companies aim to do more without adding complexity, invasive procedures, or heavy infrastructure. Below is a structured breakdown of where innovation is concentrating, and why these companies mattered enough to reach the Battlefield 200.

Clinical efficiency, diagnostics, and hospital operations

Several startups focus on making hospitals faster, safer, and more data-driven:

Akara uses AI sensors and autonomous UV disinfection robots to prepare operating rooms faster between surgeries. The impact is measurable: shorter turnover times allow hospitals to perform more procedures per day, improving patient access and revenue simultaneously.

Pharos automates the extraction of patient safety data from medical records for regulatory reporting. By replacing manual reviews with AI, the platform reduces administrative burden while targeting preventable patient harm.

Eos.ai tackles fragmented electronic medical records by cleaning, compressing, and harmonising healthcare data. Standardised datasets directly improve the performance of downstream AI models used in diagnostics and population health.

RADiCAIT, an Oxford spinout, applies AI to convert routine CT scans into PET-like imaging. PET scans are costly and scarce, while CT scanners are widely available. The ability to extract PET-level insight from CT images lowers cost and accelerates diagnosis.

Noninvasive monitoring and early detection

A major trend across the Battlefield list is noninvasive diagnostics:

Monere uses a smartphone camera to analyse eyelid colour as a proxy for anaemia and iron deficiency, eliminating the need for blood draws.

Near Wave applies a handheld device to measure oxygen saturation and haemoglobin levels without needles.

MariTest targets malaria diagnosis in sub-Saharan Africa using a bloodless rapid test. Removing reliance on trained lab technicians allows diagnosis in rural regions where infrastructure is limited.

SpotitEarly combines AI with trained dogs to detect early-stage cancers from breath samples. The approach builds on studies demonstrating canine cancer detection and translates it into a scalable diagnostic workflow.

Vital Audio uses bioacoustics to extract heart rate, blood pressure, and respiratory metrics from short voice recordings, enabling remote monitoring at a population scale.

Brain, nervous system, and cognitive health

Neurotechnology featured heavily. Axoft is developing a soft, implantable brain interface designed to safely interact with the nervous system for years, targeting severe neurological conditions.

Neural Drive offers a noninvasive brain-computer interface that allows paralysed patients to communicate via a blink-to-speak system, restoring communication without surgery.

AWEAR places EEG sensors in an ear-worn device to monitor chronic stress, positioning mental health tracking alongside step counts and sleep metrics.

GLITCHERS Lab collects cognitive data through video games, particularly for Alzheimer’s research. Gamification enables large-scale data collection that traditional testing struggles to achieve.

Women’s health, fertility, and sleep

Ovulio Corp. uses saliva-based hormone monitoring to help manage fertility, menopause, and conditions such as PCOS. Unlike disposable tests, the device is reusable and noninvasive.

Sybil Health combines science-backed therapies and lifestyle interventions to help women manage menopause, offering hormone and alternative treatment paths.

Yuzi Care connects families with birth and postpartum doulas, addressing gaps in maternal and postnatal support through digital coordination.

Serene Sleep addresses snoring and sleep apnea with a minimally invasive, permanent procedure, offering an alternative to long-term CPAP use.

Nutrition, microbiome, and lifestyle optimisation

Nutrition intelligence emerged as another cluster. Food for Health provides personalised grocery and food guidance grounded in scientific evidence.

NUSEUM applies AI to convert complex health data into actionable food and recipe recommendations for enterprise clients across healthcare and insurance.

PillarBiome analyses gut microbiome data to deliver personalised health insights, tapping into one of the richest emerging datasets in preventive medicine.

Care access, rehabilitation, and human support

Care Hero builds a tech-enabled caregiver network to address labour shortages by allowing caregivers to support more patients efficiently.

VIZQ Technologies uses AI and VR to expand access to speech and language therapy for children, targeting shortages in trained therapists.

Some Other Place, now rebranded as Hug, connects users with trained human listeners for real-time peer support. The model emphasises empathy over automation.

Remote recovery, virtual access, and digital diagnostics

Endless Health delivers at-home health assessments aimed at predicting heart and metabolic conditions early, before symptoms even show. By skipping the need for in-clinic visits, this startup is moving proactive health management into your living room.

Lexi AI offers real-time, multilingual medical interpretation powered by AI. In emergency rooms and cross-border clinics, fast, accurate translation can make the difference between life and death—Lexi AI steps in where human interpreters can’t scale.

Meo Health provides a drug-free digital recovery program for people suffering from long COVID. Clinically tested and tech-enabled, Meo’s approach combines data tracking and lifestyle therapy to treat a condition many still don’t fully understand.

Emerging interfaces and performance health

Zemi Labs develops smart clothing that captures heart, muscle, skin, and movement data. Unlike wrist-based wearables, garments collect a broader range of biosignals.

Vocadian uses voice AI to detect fatigue in frontline workers, aiming to prevent accidents and productivity loss.

ELLUSTRÖS applies AI and image analysis to automatically adjust seating posture, reducing workplace injury and improving ergonomic fit.

Innov8 AI analyses social media narratives to flag emerging reputational risks, helping health organisations respond to sentiment shifts faster.

Arm Bionics and ArtSkin push prosthetics forward with affordable 3D-printed arms and electronic artificial skin that restores touch, both designed to integrate with existing devices.

Che Innovations Uganda rounds out the list with NeoNest, a low-cost transport warmer for preterm infants, addressing a critical equipment gap in rural Africa.

Collectively, these 33 startups highlight where health innovation is concentrating: AI as infrastructure, noninvasive diagnostics, and scalable care delivery models that reduce cost without reducing outcomes.