Femtech has long been a category overlooked by investors — but there are signs that it’s starting to get more attention.
In 2024, VC investment in femtechs climbed to over €334m, nearing the sector’s previous peaks in 2021 (€337m) and 2019 (€346m), according to Dealroom data. Europe also got its first femtech unicorn: London-based Flo Health — though onlookers were quick to point out its all-male founding team.
Which femtech startups could be next to grab the limelight? Here’s who European investors are watching closely.
Katherine Mellis, investment director at Sandwater
Nua Surgical — Ireland
Nua Surgical is developing surgical retractors (tools that hold back tissue and organs so doctors can better see what they’re operating on) for safer, more effective C-section surgeries — one of the most common surgeries globally.
Ovom — Germany
Ovom combines a physical clinic with AI-powered digital solutions to provide personalised fertility assessments and treatments. While IVF is becoming more commonplace, the success rates for the treatment working are still very low — just 32% for women under 35 and much lower for those over that age — according to the UK’s National Health Service. Alongside IVF, Ovom also offers egg and sperm freezing.
Pharmista — Sweden
Single-use pregnancy tests are not only expensive but also entail substantial plastic waste. Pharmista is developing a reusable pregnancy test that is more accurate, cheaper and user-friendly than standard pregnancy tests, while being good for the environment.
Hvild — Norway
Hvild is a digital platform for employers to support the health of their women employees. The platform offers learning resources around women’s health, best practice handbooks and provides certification for women’s health friendly employees, helping them attract female talent. Its subsidiary Hvild Life & Health offers menopause health insurance which employees can buy as an add-on to existing health insurance they offer.
Peri — Ireland
Peri builds a wearable device which tracks and analyses symptoms of perimenopause. Users attach it to their torso, and are provided with data on their sleep, lifestyle and perimenopausal symptoms. They’re also given guidance on how to best manage the permimenopause via a connected app.
Kasia Cheng, associate at True
Samphire Neuroscience — UK
Founded by an Oxford and Harvard trained neuroscientist, Samphire has developed a wearable headband that emits electrical signals to the brain to alleviate pain and mood-related symptoms of PMS. It’s moved remarkably quickly, securing its CE mark and bringing its product to market in a short time. I’m particularly excited about its work in mood regulation, a vastly underserved area with significant potential to improve women’s quality of life.
Daye — UK
Daye is a women’s health platform which develops diagnostic tampons that test for STIs, HPV and the vaginal microbiome. Traditional screening methods rely on a speculum, an almost medieval clamp device that makes the experience uncomfortable and deters women from regular testing. Daye’s solution is non-invasive and fits into daily routines, making testing more comfortable and convenient.
Louise — France
Louise is an AI-powered digital platform for users to log information about their fertility journey — for instance, what treatments they are doing. Healthcare professionals are then offered AI-powered insights about their patients, including treatment options that would work best for them, enabling clinicians to make more informed decisions.
Anne Portwich, partner at EQT Life Sciences
Pregnolia — Switzerland
Preterm birth — when a baby is born before 37 weeks of pregnancy — is the leading cause of neonatal mortality, yet predicting it remains a challenge. Pregnolia has developed a diagnostic tool that measures cervical stiffness, providing clinicians with an objective way to assess preterm birth risk. This enables earlier interventions and better pregnancy management, improving outcomes for both mothers and babies.
Aspivix — Switzerland
Cervical procedures can be painful and outdated, often relying on tools invented over a century ago. Aspivix has designed a gentler, suction-based alternative to the tenaculum — a surgical instrument commonly used to hold the cervix during gynecological procedures — reducing trauma and discomfort for patients.
AltaScience — Ireland
Permanent contraception often requires surgery, but AltaScience offers a non-surgical alternative. Its ‘AltaSeal implant’ blocks the fallopian tubes (where an egg passes from the ovaries to the uterus during conception) safely and effectively, providing a quick, in-office procedure with no incisions or recovery time.
Nemo Healthcare — the Netherlands
Fetal monitoring is crucial during pregnancy, yet existing methods can be invasive and uncomfortable. Nemo Healthcare has created a non-invasive electrophysiological monitoring system that provides high-quality data on both fetal and maternal well-being. By improving accuracy and comfort, the technology supports better pregnancy care and safer deliveries.
Dr Carina Tyrrell, venture partner at Black Opal Ventures
BoobyBiome — UK
BoobyBiome is a biotech startup focused on harnessing the breast milk microbiome to improve infant gut health. Founded by a team of scientists from UCL, the company is developing a device to preserve breast milk’s biome and antioxidants and a synbiotic product engineered to replicate the benefits of breast milk.
Elvie — UK
One of Europe’s best-funded femtechs, Elvie develops discreet devices such as a silent, wearable breast pump, and a connected pelvic floor trainer to help with postpartum recovery, bladder control and core strength.
Dr Tyrrell also recommended Daye.
Kim Oreskovic, managing partner at Innoviance Investments
Xena — Germany
Xena offers AI-powered 3D disease mapping and augmented reality (AR)-guided precision for gynecological surgery. With a 50% failure rate in surgeries for endometriosis and fibroids, Xena’s technology helps surgeons “see the invisible,” achieving a 91% surgical match — nearly doubling industry accuracy.
CC Diagnostics
Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women, however, nearly 30% of cancers are missed due to delays in diagnosis. Traditional screening methods are also uncomfortable, with only 15% of targeted women participating on account of concerns about the procedure. lCC Diagnostics’s Methica CC Kit aims to detect cervical cancer early on using epigenetic markers — traits that are passed from parent to offspring but don’t change the DNA sequence – offering a 97% accuracy rate and greater sensitivity than traditional pap smears.
Triin Linamagi, founding partner of Sie Ventures
Hormona — UK
Hormona provides personalised hormone healthcare via an AI-powered app. The platform tests users for estrogen, progesterone and follicle-stimulating hormone levels with over 90% accuracy within 15 minutes, helping users identify and resolve hormonal health problems.
Adora Health — UK
Adora is a women’s health platform which provides users with expert menopause support, symptom management tools and online gynaecologists, helping women anticipate and manage symptoms before they disrupt life.
Linamagi also recommended BoobyBiome and Xena.
Philip Kurzrock, investment manager at Heliad
XbyX — Germany
XbyX is a digital platform which provides science-backed support — from nutrition and herbal supplements to coaching and education — for women approaching the menopause. Launched in 2019, XbyX has already built a community of 50k women.
Meela — Germany
Founded by a licensed psychologist, Meela is a digital platform that matches women with compatible therapists. Once users fill out a form, Meela’s matching algorithm provides a series of options that a user can choose from to find their best-fit therapist and therapy method.
Vira Health — UK
Vira Health’s Stella App provides its users — who are given access through health insurers and employers — with personalised treatment and care plans for the perimenopause and menopause. 70% of Stella users report significant improvement in symptom management.
Fabrice de Rego and Laura Medji, general partners of Blueprint VC
Lileo — Belgium
Lileo provides a subscription-based service for mothers on their breastfeeding journey. It offers a wearable breast pump that mimics top-performing pumps to boost milk output and reduce pain, as well as an AI-powered lactation app offering 24/7 guidance. The lactation app is currently in beta testing.
Ninti — France
Ninti provides digital resources and services to help workplaces better support the health challenges their employees — particularly women — may face. It offers educational sessions on reproductive and mental health issues that may affect them down the line and provides practical advice on managing them alongside their jobs. It also collaborates with HR departments to help workplaces implement inclusive health policies.
Carina Roth, investment manager at Fund F
The Blue Box – Spain
The Blue Box is developing an AI-powered breast cancer detection device using urine samples, Its approach offers a pain-free, radiation-free and accessible screening method, aiming to improve early detection rates, especially among women with dense breasts who are of a younger age.
Amilis – UK
Amilis is building a digital platform to enable patients to better understand their fertility journey. The platform will provide patients with a reproductive health wallet, giving them access to their health history, diagnoses and treatments, and provide matching services for users and partner fertility clinics.
Diamens – Austria
Diamens is developing a non-invasive, at-home endometriosis test using menstrual blood. After the user collects a blood sample, tests are sent to labs by post that provide a diagnosis and guidance for next steps. Led by a team of experts in medical science, bioinformatics and gynaecology the startup is preparing for clinical studies for its at-home kit.
Solence – France
Solence’s app aims to help women manage Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) symptoms, a disease impacting the life and wellbeing of one in seven women worldwide, and for which there is no cure. Solence offers a science-based digital programme to help users manage their symptoms, improve their quality of life and reduce their medical burden.
Fiona Thwaites, angel investor
Onawave Medical — Ireland
Ovawave Medical builds a digital biomarker (wearable device) for earlier and easier diagnosis of pelvic conditions like endometriosis, which takes an average of seven years to diagnose and is often the barrier to fertility.
Phase App — UK
Phase App is a subscription-based productivity tool which integrates information about women’s menstrual cycles in order to provide users with insight about how their hormones impact their energy and cognitive abilities. It has launched a minimal viable product (MVP) in collaboration with the University of Greenwich in the UK.
Anya Health — UK
Anya is an AI companion that provides 24/7 expert support to help women through the challenges of every life stage — from planning and starting a family to experiencing the menopause. If more information is needed, a user can forward their queries onto a team of real-life health and wellness specialists who offer users one-to-one consultations via messaging and video sessions.
Read the orginal article: https://sifted.eu/articles/30-femtech-startups-to-watch/
