Physicians Capital Fund is an early-stage healthcare fund anchored by physicians and allied health professionals. We're bridging the gap between tech innovators and those on the healthcare frontline. Through strategic investments in the most fundamentally promising healthcare solutions, we're driving a new standard of healthcare innovation.
A look at the conversations driving the next era of women's health innovation.
The critical challenge in women's health is not a lack of innovation, but a systemic failure to integrate novel products into reimbursable delivery models. That's why we hosted the Women's Health Nexus, a half-day conference designed to bring together founders, clinicians, policymakers, and investors to explore critical conversations. The conversations throughout the day covered a wide range of topics, but several themes rose to the top.
Across panels, speakers pointed to the same issue. Great products and strong clinical evidence can still stall when reimbursement, regulation, and clinical adoption are not moving together.
Discussions touched on state-level changes to care models, the pace of AI adoption inside electronic health records, and the practical realities of introducing new technology into complex systems. The takeaway was clear. Builders and policymakers need to be involved in the same problem-solving process much earlier.
Clinical leaders emphasized how every major stage of a woman's life affects multiple systems, risk factors, and long-term care needs.
Topics included chronic disease, cardiovascular risk, fertility, pregnancy, menopause, and gaps in prevention and screening. The conversations pointed to the same truth: women's health is not a niche. It is whole-body, whole-lifespan care, and the next wave of innovation has to reflect that complexity.
Speakers highlighted the fundamental role of data. Who is represented, how data is collected, and how it is used all influence what succeeds.
Priority areas included increasing participation in clinical research, building more representative datasets for AI, improving patient access to personal data, and creating incentives that reward better outcomes. Technology alone will not carry this space. The structures around it need to support adoption.
Recent data from PitchBook shows the same shifts highlighted throughout the Nexus, and it also reinforces the investment lens we bring at PhyCap. Healthtech companies raised $3.9 billion in Q3, which puts total 2025 funding ahead of all of 2024. Median pre-money valuations climbed to $38.5 million and median deal size reached a record $7.7 million.
Notably, the strongest activity was in analytics, operations, and telehealth, with each segment receiving more than $800 million. These areas mirror the pain points surfaced during the Nexus conversations. They also align with the "tools layer" PhyCap focuses on, including workflow automation, revenue cycle tools, and operational infrastructure. AI adoption is concentrated in exactly these categories, where practical improvements to clinical efficiency and financial performance are most needed. Exit activity is rising as well, with 42 exits recorded in Q3, most of them early acquisitions of companies solving operational challenges.
When you combine the Nexus insights with where capital is flowing, the story is clear. The market is rewarding operator-led solutions that fit into real clinical environments, which is exactly the perspective PhyCap brings as clinicians and operators investing in the next generation of healthcare innovation.
Even with rapid advances in technology, many discussions returned to the importance of the human element.
Clear communication, transparency, and patient engagement shape how quickly new solutions are accepted. Leaders also spoke about the barriers women founders still face and the need for stronger support networks across the ecosystem. Trust continues to be a critical ingredient in any meaningful change.
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