Takeaways from J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference

The annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference took place last week in San Francisco. A reported 50,000 people attended from all over the world. Over the years, I have realized the key to the events is to see old friends, make new relationships, listen to presentations from leaders, and come out with takeaways.

This year, my top takeaways include;

1)   VCs and big pharma continue to double down around oncology and rare diseases.

2)   Most exciting technologies being discussed are around advancing cell & gene therapies.

3)   The startup that generated the most conversation in my circles was EQRx. Imagine a world where a new data-driven R&D model for drug discovery lowers drug pricing.

4)   The event I enjoyed the most was the Novartis reception because it had a diverse attendee list including executives from Novartis, investors, startups from around the world, and other healthcare leaders.

5)   We are going to see more and more early-stage deals with big pharma and the later-stage pipeline appetite will be aligned to strategic business interests.

6)   A lot more interest this year around the role of China and other emerging markets for investment, partnering and licensing.

7)   There is a shift happening in the provider ecosystem. The “platform” model that groups like Mayo Clinic have adopted around “digital assets” is becoming more popular than the traditional buying and building hospitals model.

8)   More consumer-centric models by groups like Walmart and CVS are maturing, fueling the healthcare debate around whether we are patients or consumers.

9)   The most underutilized, misunderstood, and undervalued asset of any health system continues to be their data. More startups and groups are actively looking to clean the data and translate it into improvements. Great use case for artificial intelligence.

10) Healthcare costs – delivery of care or cost of care – remains a discussion. We are not moving fast enough to value-based care. This might be the year where Congress/policymakers act. 

Do you agree / disagree? Would love any comments and feedback from others who have attended over the years.