Healthcare and medtech organizations are entering the second half of 2026 under pressure to adapt quickly. Macroeconomic uncertainty, geopolitical instability, rising costs, tariff impacts, supply chain disruption, and rapid advances in AI are reshaping how companies operate and compete. As these pressures intensify, leadership teams are focusing on how to build more flexible commercial models, protect margins, and make faster decisions closer to the market.
In our latest video, Simon Kucher Senior Partner and Managing Partner of Global Healthcare and Life Sciences, Omar Ahmad, shares insights from recent conversations with healthcare leaders around the world. He highlights three priorities shaping the sector: digitalization and AI, commercial flexibility and margin resilience, and value differentiation and monetization.
The trends shaping healthcare and medtech
Three themes are dominating conversations across healthcare and medtech: digitalization and AI, commercial flexibility and margin resilience, and value differentiation and monetization.
The first is digitalization and AI. Many companies still rely on fragmented data environments, with disconnected systems and shadow data processes across areas such as CRM, CPQ, and CLM. In the age of AI, this is no longer sustainable. Companies need reliable data infrastructure so teams can access the right information quickly and use AI effectively in commercial decision making. Many organizations are already undertaking transformation programs to address this, recognizing that data infrastructure is the foundation for speed, efficiency, and future AI adoption.
The second is commercial flexibility and margin resilience. As macroeconomic conditions shift, companies need to respond faster to local market changes, cost movements, and supply chain disruption. This requires clearer decision rights, stronger local market responsiveness, and more efficient mechanisms for passing through price increases when costs rise.
The third is value differentiation and monetization. Healthcare and medtech markets are crowded, and companies need to capture the attention of providers and payers. That means clearly articulating clinical and economic value, while also monetizing the services, software, workflow tools, and digital capabilities that support the core product.
Key takeaways from the video
Where the growth opportunities are
- Faster commercial decisions: Companies that strengthen their data infrastructure and connect fragmented systems will be better placed to access the right information at the right time and make faster, more informed decisions. This also creates the foundation needed to scale AI beyond pilots and into commercial areas such as pricing, segmentation, targeting, and sales effectiveness.
- More responsive commercial models: Growth will also come from the ability to react faster to changing market conditions, cost pressures, and customer needs. Organizations that move decisions closer to business units and local markets will be better equipped to capture opportunities as they emerge.
- Revenue beyond the core product: In a crowded healthcare and medtech market, companies can differentiate by clearly communicating clinical and economic value. Additional growth can come from monetizing services around the core product, including digital software, workflow solutions, and support tools.
What leaders should prioritize
- Fix the foundations first: Leaders should prioritize the data and digital infrastructure needed to support faster decisions and future AI adoption. This includes connecting fragmented systems across CRM, CPQ, CLM, and other commercial tools so teams can access the right information at the right time.
- Enable vertical decentralization: Organizations need to become more responsive without losing control. Leaders should empower business units to make decisions closer to local markets, while setting clear guardrails to protect consistency, profitability, and strategic direction.
- Protect margins more actively: With cost pressure, inflation, tariffs, and supply chain disruption affecting profitability, companies need stronger mechanisms to manage margin. This includes improving price increase processes, strengthening supply chain resilience, and increasing efficiency across internal commercial processes.
- Move AI into daily commercial work: AI should move beyond pilots and basic productivity use. Leaders should focus on embedding AI into practical commercial use cases, including pricing, segmentation, targeting, sales coaching, and customer narrative development.
What's next for AI in healthcare?
- Put the digital infrastructure in place first: AI can only create value at scale if the right digital and data infrastructure is already in place. Companies need connected systems, reliable data, and streamlined commercial processes before AI can be embedded effectively across the organization.
- Move from pilots to adoption: AI needs to move beyond experimentation and basic productivity use. The next step is to embed AI into commercial processes so it can support better and faster decision making across marketing, sales, pricing, and planning.
- Focus on practical commercial use cases: The most immediate opportunities include pricing, segmentation, targeting, and sales coaching. AI can help teams identify the right customer groups, refine commercial narratives, and improve how sales teams communicate value.
- Adapt processes and behaviors: To capture the benefits, companies need to move from isolated pilot cases to real integration. This requires clear ownership, process change, and confidence that AI-driven insights can be used in day-to-day commercial decision making.
The healthcare and medtech sectors are entering a period shaped by uncertainty, efficiency pressures, and the need to turn AI adoption into commercial impact. Organizations that build stronger digital foundations, improve commercial agility, protect margins, and embed AI into their commercial processes will be better equipped to navigate change, unlock growth, and create long term value. Watch the full video to hear Omar’s insights on the strategic priorities shaping healthcare and medtech through 2026 and beyond.
Watch the full video
