VBEF Future Healthcare 100: The Barometer of China's Medical Innovation with 80+ IPOs in 8 Years

Describing the innovation in China’s healthcare industry over the past decade, one might call it the rise of a major power, unprecedented, or a constellation of shining stars.

In an era of full-throttle medical innovation, we have witnessed repeated instances of leapfrog development, experienced one breakthrough after another from zero, and resolved numerous critical technologies that once bottlenecked our progress.

Yes, we have been continuously documenting all of this in writing.

Moreover, another ranking has left a notable and traceable mark on healthcare innovation in this era.

This is the Future Healthcare Top 100 List.

Since the release of its inaugural list in 2016, it has gradually become a bellwether for innovation in the healthcare industry.

To align with the evolving landscape and trends of the healthcare industry ecosystem in 2024, the Future Healthcare Top 100 Conference will be renamed and upgraded to the VBEF Future Healthcare Ecosystem Expo, with its rankings undergoing corresponding iterations.

The 8th VBEF Future Medical Ecosystem Expo and VBEF Awards Have Officially Launched.

Building on its previous foundation, the VBEF Awards have further segmented and restructured the rankings and selection criteria, while introducing the “Healthcare Industry Innovative Products Ranking” and the “Annual Product Award.”

As a result, the VBEF selection scale has reached an all-time high, undoubtedly providing more extensive exhibition opportunities for innovative enterprises and products in the healthcare industry.

Since 2016, the Future Healthcare 100 Conference has been successfully held for seven sessions, releasing the Future Healthcare 100 List and selection awards for the healthcare industry for eight consecutive years.

To date, the published rankings have repeatedly witnessed and documented industrial transformation, with the tacit understanding between the rankings and industrial innovation evident from the continually upgraded modules.

Changes in the Category Structure of the Top 100 Future Healthcare Companies Rankings Over the Years (Red Text Indicates Categories Adjusted or Added in the Respective Year)

Source: VBEF Organizing Committee

In addition to expanding in scale and categorizing into three major sub-sectors—medicine, pharmaceuticals, and healthcare services—the annual rankings have undergone two major updates: the addition of the Digital Healthcare Ranking in 2019 and the Business & Supply Chain Services Ranking in 2023.

First, a multitude of factors have contributed to the establishment of the Digital Healthcare Ranking.

The inaugural 2016 Future Healthcare 100 list evolved from the 2015 “Internet Healthcare Leaders List.” The Digital Healthcare List represented both a continuation of this initiative and an inevitable milestone in the industry’s development at that time.

During this period, internet healthcare entered its moment in the spotlight:

In 2018, internet healthcare received formal recognition from national policies for the first time;

2019 marked the first wave of concentrated development for internet hospitals following the introduction of new policies;

Since 2020, internet healthcare has again played a significant role in subsequent epidemic prevention and control;

During this period, both internet medical service providers and companies building internet hospital platforms experienced rapid growth.

During the same period, medical artificial intelligence and big data rapidly emerged.

According to the "2018 Medical Artificial Intelligence Report" by VCBeat's VBInsight, there were more than 100 active medical AI companies in China that year.

In 2020, Keya Medical’s AI-based medical imaging product received regulatory approval, becoming the first medical AI product in China to obtain a Class III medical device certificate for artificial intelligence.

As of the end of 2023, more than 100 medical AI products in China had obtained Class III medical device registration certificates.

Furthermore, the implementation of policies such as smart hospital construction and the rating system for smart hospital services, coupled with the emergence of digital therapeutics as a “dark horse” since 2021, has established digital healthcare as a substantial and significant niche sector.

Secondly, breakthroughs in "chokehold" technologies and the establishment of self-reliant, controllable supply chains have become focal points for the industry, with rankings increasingly directing attention toward upstream industrial innovation.

The China Business and Supply Chain Services List, added in 2023, also stems from this trend. Companies on the list are primarily engaged in the upstream segment of the biopharmaceutical industry and pharmaceutical/medical device outsourcing services. Key sectors include life science tools and services, as well as CXO (CRO/CDMO) providers for pharmaceuticals and medical devices.

Prior to 2022, the Future Healthcare 100 list primarily covered non-public companies in the primary healthcare market. In 2022, a “Listed Companies’ Innovation Ranking” was added to the main list, mainly for two reasons:

On one hand, some innovative enterprises have gradually entered the secondary market, among which there are quite a few companies with strong innovation capabilities that have already generated certain revenue and profits, listed on the stringent A-share market.

On the other hand, driven by policies such as centralized procurement and payment method reforms, traditional pharmaceutical and medical device companies are accelerating their innovation efforts. Large listed companies are actively establishing or acquiring R&D pipelines for innovative drugs and medical devices, thereby increasing their investment in innovation.

With stronger financial capabilities, more comprehensive pipeline systems, and more standardized management practices, listed companies have become an indispensable innovative force in the healthcare industry.

As a strategic emerging industry in China, multiple provinces across the country have proposed in recent years to build highlands for the biopharmaceutical industry, with industrial parks serving as the primary vehicle for implementing this plan.

Across various regions, government-guided funds and state-owned asset platforms are being leveraged to promote investment attraction in the biopharmaceutical industry, fostering close collaboration with investment institutions and industrial parks. This has positioned industrial parks as pivotal bridges connecting enterprises, capital, policy, and other key elements, playing a crucial role in the ecosystem.

In light of this, in addition to the continuous upgrading of the main ranking, the innovative awards within the Top 100 Healthcare Companies selection are also aligning with these innovation enablers.

Since 2018, the Innovation Awards have successively added categories such as Annual Investment Institution, Annual Entrepreneur, Annual Investor, Annual Industrial Park, and Annual Young Scientist. Investors and entrepreneurs are direct participants in industrial innovation, playing a significant role in driving its progress.

While the awards put a spotlight on these participants, the Future Healthcare Top 100 Conference also featured sub-forums on venture capital and investment as well as closed-door meetings, establishing multi-party communication channels and creating synergy between the awards and the conference.

Furthermore, the healthcare industry is actively fostering "source innovation," with a growing consensus on prioritizing the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements. To identify more outstanding scientists and innovations, youth scientist awards have been added to the existing innovation award categories.

"Staying in sync with industrial innovation and keeping pace with emerging trends is the founding mission of the Future Healthcare 100 list."

As of 2023, the seven rounds of evaluations have collectively released 205 lists and awards, as well as four “Top 100 Enterprises Growth Analysis Reports,” with a cumulative total of 3,463 enterprises listed, 626 organizations awarded, and 340 individuals honored.

The ranking always adheres to one principle: non-listed companies are ranked by valuation, without interference from other factors.

During the annual ranking selection period, the organizing committee conducts a comprehensive survey of innovative companies in the industry. The list is published only after corporate valuations are confirmed through multiple rounds of review by various stakeholders.

For the primary healthcare market, this move will, on one hand, enable companies to understand the growth status of peers in the same sector, thereby fostering communication and healthy competition; on the other hand, it will promote information symmetry between investors and fundraisers, provide reference valuations, and facilitate more efficient matching between enterprises seeking financing and investment institutions looking for targets.

An independent and objective selection mechanism has established the list’s industry influence, attracting growing participation from enterprises and investment institutions. This engagement delivers an increasing volume of high-value information to the market, fostering a virtuous cycle.

A “regular” on the list, demonstrating sustained innovation.

The selection scope of the Future Healthcare 100 main list primarily targets non-listed companies. With their rapid development, over 80 companies have successfully listed on secondary markets and thus “graduated” from the list.

Zhiyun Health has been listed on the main ranking of the Future Healthcare 100 Awards four times, witnessing the rise and fall of a large cohort of diabetes management companies. After decisively abandoning its B2C approach, Zhiyun Health firmly implemented its H2H2C strategy, achieving scaled growth and completing its IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2022.

Since its independent spin-off in 2019, JD Health has been included in the Future Healthcare 100 Digital Healthcare List. Following its IPO in 2020, it was subsequently recognized as an Innovative Listed Company in both 2022 and 2023.

United Imaging Healthcare was listed on the “Top 100 Innovative Medical Devices in Future Healthcare” ranking for five consecutive years. As a leading domestic enterprise in high-end medical equipment, United Imaging Healthcare has broken the monopoly of multinational giants in China’s medical imaging equipment market. Following its initial public offering (IPO) on the STAR Market in 2022, United Imaging Healthcare was included in the 2023 Innovation Capability Ranking of Listed Companies.

Through the “Top 100 Enterprises Growth Analysis Report,” the value of listed companies is more fully demonstrated.

Each edition of the Top 100 Future Healthcare Companies list is accompanied by a “Growth Report on the Top 100 Enterprises,” providing insights into innovation trends within the healthcare industry.

Over the past eight years, the ranking and enterprises have consistently complemented each other, serving not only as a platform to showcase corporate value but also enhancing the intrinsic value of the ranking itself.

In 2024, as the Top 100 Future Healthcare Conference was upgraded to the VBEF Future Healthcare Ecosystem Exhibition, the Top 100 Future Healthcare selection was also upgraded to the VBEF Selection, comprising the VBEF Rankings and the VBEF Innovation Awards.

8th VBEF Selection Lists and Award Categories (Red Text Indicates Adjusted or Newly Added Lists)

Source: VBEF Organizing Committee

As digitalization and intelligence have extensively and deeply permeated every aspect of healthcare, they intersect with the three major subsectors—medical care, pharmaceuticals, and services—to varying degrees. In line with industry trends, the main ranking system has been restructured to include the Innovative Medical Devices and Intelligent Manufacturing List, the Innovative Pharmaceuticals and Biological Products List, and the Digital Healthcare and Health Services List.

The most significant change to the 2024 evaluation framework is the addition of the “Healthcare Industry Innovative Products List” and the introduction of product-specific awards.

Among them, the Healthcare Industry Innovation Product List aims to select healthcare innovation products and solutions that demonstrate the most advanced technology, high value for domestic substitution, ability to meet unmet clinical needs, global competitiveness, and prominent industry-leading effects. The list will conduct a weighted evaluation of the annual performance of participating products across four dimensions—technological innovation capability, clinical and application value, industry potential, and industry influence—based on 12 indicators.

Scope of the Healthcare Industry Innovation Product Rankings, Source: VBEF Organizing Committee

The Product Awards comprise three categories: Excellent Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Supply Chain Products, Most Procurement-Worthy Supply Chain Products, and Best Technical Service Supply Chain Products, which will be selected through industry research.

The industrial factors highlighted in the VBEF selection process have been further expanded: from a previous focus on enterprises, investment institutions, industrial parks, and key individuals, to now including innovative products.

What is the logic behind this?

Previous iterations of the ranking focused on how innovation was achieved, who participated, and their modes of involvement; in contrast, this product-centric approach emphasizes the quality of innovation outcomes, marking a shift from process to results.

If the reform of the review and approval system for drugs and medical devices is regarded as the starting point for industrial innovation and venture capital investment, then, to date, whether measured by the R&D timeline for drug and medical device products or by the lifespan of venture capital funds, the market has nearly completed a full cycle and should now be entering a phase of evaluating its outcomes.

In terms of actual performance, healthcare innovation companies have successively delivered their results. In recent years, domestically produced Class 1 innovative drugs and innovative medical devices have been approved one after another. These products and solutions require a broader platform to showcase their innovative value and achieve better commercialization.

At the 8th VBEF Future Healthcare Ecosystem Exhibition, in addition to adding the “Healthcare Industry Innovation Product List” and the “Annual Innovative Product Award” to the selections, several other initiatives were introduced:

Launch the “VBEF New Product Launch Event” as a premier platform for the global debut of cutting-edge products from healthcare companies in China and worldwide, hard-core roadshows for innovative products, and high-quality promotion of high-potential global products;

Expand the exhibition scale, with over 10,000 square meters of space and 200+ bookable booths, divided into five featured zones focusing on new technologies, new models, new practices, new ecosystems, and new collaborations;

Product Rankings & Awards, Launch Events, and Exhibitions—these three pillars work in synergy to create an integrated platform for showcasing the value of innovative healthcare products, facilitating supply-demand matchmaking, and expanding resources.

The past editions of the "Top 100 Future Healthcare Companies" selection have garnered significant attention from industry participants, establishing themselves as a bellwether for innovation and investment in the healthcare sector and a focal point for industrial innovation.

In 2024, the comprehensively upgraded rankings will set new highs in terms of innovation coverage dimensions, as well as the volume of enterprise nominations and selections for innovation awards. With 500 listed companies and over 200 innovation awards, this underscores that the industry influence of the VBEF selections will reach new heights once again.

Meanwhile, supply chain innovation in pharmaceutical and medical device R&D, Chinese enterprises seizing the global high ground of innovation, and the global expansion of Chinese innovative products have become hot topics and definitive trends.

VCBeat Awards will once again ride the wave of the times, positioning itself at a critical juncture in the healthcare industry. It provides a high-value showcase for supply chains, innovative enterprises, and groundbreaking products, conveying the innovation value of Chinese companies through a comprehensive platform ecosystem. This initiative supports healthcare innovators in accelerating their growth and expanding their reach.

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