Indian Healthcare Innovation Market: $60B by 2028 - Bain & Co

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The Indian healthcare innovation market is anticipated to reach an estimated $60 billion by FY 2028, with Indian companies increasingly leveraging emerging technologies to add innovation vectors, including new business models, software-led solutions, and products, according to a report by consulting firm Bain and Co.

Currently valued at $30 billion, the sector is predominantly led by pharma services and health tech entities, with biotech and med tech sectors in their early stages but exhibiting initial signs of growth, according to the “Healthcare Innovation in India” report.

Historically recognized for pioneering cost-effective services and products, the Indian healthcare industry has ventured into new realms of innovation, leveraging emerging technologies, the report said.

This shift aligns with the global trend of pharmaceutical companies increasingly outsourcing discovery, development, and manufacturing processes. Bain Research projects a rise from 58 percent to 61 percent in outsourcing expenditure by 2027.

The sector encompasses over 10,000 start-ups and has experienced heightened activity during the COVID-19 pandemic, expanding both in consumer-facing and enterprise-facing segments. The report said that global expansion is a notable trend among health tech players seeking to broaden their patient base.

According to Bain, India’s growing scientific and technological expertise will increase its importance as an innovation hub for Big Pharma.

“Twelve of the top twenty global pharma companies have established GCCs in India. While these units were originally set up as shared service centers with a tactical focus on support functions, several evolved into innovation hubs focused on deep RandD (pre-clinical, development, and clinical trials) and technological innovation (e.g., AI/ML, AR/VR, and advanced analytics). This trend will likely grow in the coming years, with Indian GCCs playing a key role in driving the innovation agenda,” said the Bain report.