The Weekly Term Sheet (2026-W02)

Regulatory Shift: FDA Deregulates Wellness AI

The most consequential announcement of the week came from FDA Commissioner Marty Makary at CES 2026 on January 6. Makary announced sweeping deregulation of digital health products.

Clinical decision support software delivering single recommendations no longer requires FDA review. The 2019 "General Wellness: Policy for Low Risk Devices" guidance was expanded to exempt more wearables from premarket review.

"We want to let companies know, with very clear guidance, that if their device or software is simply providing information, they can do that without FDA regulation," Makary stated. "If they're not making claims that they are medical grade, let's let the market decide." He emphasized the FDA needs to move "at Silicon Valley speed."

HHS Deputy Secretary Jim O'Neill reinforced this direction at the Innovation Policy Summit: "Safety is important, but if I had to pick, I think faster is better." He announced deployment of LLMs to all 65,000 HHS employees and discussed the CMS ACCESS model for digital health reimbursement.

Market reactions were modest but positive—Dexcom, Abbott, and Medtronic shares rose slightly, with Garmin gaining approximately 3%. Privacy experts voiced concerns. Cindy Cohn of the Electronic Frontier Foundation warned that HIPAA doesn't cover consumer device data: "Companies may use data to train AI models or sell to third parties."

Mergers & Acquisitions

BioNTech Completes CureVac Acquisition (~$1.25B)

BioNTech finalized its compulsory share acquisition of CureVac on January 6, completing a transaction originally announced in mid-2025. The deal, valued at approximately $1.25 billion, consolidates mRNA intellectual property portfolios under BioNTech's control and is intended to support expansion of mRNA applications into oncology and rare diseases.

Eli Lilly to Acquire Ventyx Biosciences ($1.2B)

Eli Lilly announced on January 7 a definitive agreement to acquire Ventyx Biosciences for $14.00 per share in cash, valuing the transaction at approximately $1.2 billion. The offer represents a 62% premium to Ventyx's 30-day average share price and received unanimous board approval from both companies.

The acquisition expands Lilly's immunology pipeline with Ventyx's oral NLRP3 inhibitor programs, which target inflammatory-mediated diseases. The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2026, pending Ventyx stockholder approval and regulatory clearances.

BofA Securities served as exclusive financial advisor to Lilly, with Ropes & Gray providing legal counsel. Ventyx retained Jefferies as lead financial advisor with Moelis as co-advisor, and Wilson Sonsini as legal counsel.

Amgen Acquires Dark Blue Therapeutics (Up to $840M)

Amgen announced on January 6 the acquisition of Dark Blue Therapeutics Ltd., a private UK biotech developing protein degrader therapies for acute myeloid leukemia. The deal carries a total potential value of up to $840 million including milestones.

Dark Blue's lead asset is a preclinical small-molecule degrader targeting MLLT1/3 in AML. The specific payment breakdown between upfront and milestone components was not disclosed.

Haemonetics Acquires Vivasure Medical (Up to €185M)

Haemonetics agreed on January 9 to acquire Vivasure Medical Ltd., an Irish developer of novel large-bore vascular closure devices. The transaction includes €100 million in upfront cash (approximately €52 million net after offsetting prior Haemonetics loans to Vivasure) plus up to €85 million in contingent earn-outs tied to sales growth and regulatory milestones.

The acquisition gives Haemonetics access to Vivasure's FDA-pending PerQseal Elite bioabsorbable patch system for arterial and venous closure.

W.L. Gore Acquires Conformal Medical

W.L. Gore completed its acquisition of Conformal Medical on January 5, adding the company's left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) system to Gore's structural heart portfolio. Financial terms were not disclosed, though Conformal had previously raised $161 million in venture funding.

Fagron Closes Purifarma Acquisition

Brazilian pharmaceutical compounding company Purifarma was acquired by Fagron on January 6, following clearance from Brazil's antitrust authority CADE.

Licensing & Collaboration Agreements

The week included licensing deals totaling over $10 billion in potential value across oncology, immunology, respiratory, and AI-driven drug discovery.

Ikarovec & VectorBuilder — AAV Capsid Technology (Up to $1B)

Ikarovec signed a license agreement with VectorBuilder on January 6 for AAV capsid technology targeting ophthalmology gene therapy applications. The deal carries potential payments of up to $1 billion.

Eli Lilly & InduPro — AI/ML Platform (~$950M + Equity)

Lilly added to its AI-driven drug discovery partnerships on January 7 with a collaboration with InduPro for access to the company's membrane interactomics platform. The deal is valued at approximately $950 million in potential payments plus an equity investment, with programs focused on oncology targets.

AirNexis & Haisco — COPD Drug License ($955M Potential)

Newly launched AirNexis Therapeutics licensed exclusive ex-China rights from Haisco Pharmaceutical on January 9 for HSK39004 (AN01), a Phase 2 dual PDE3/4 inhibitor for COPD. AirNexis paid $40 million upfront and issued Haisco a 19.9% equity stake, with Haisco eligible for up to $955 million in regulatory and commercial milestones plus low double-digit royalties.

Servier & Insilico Medicine — AI Oncology Discovery ($888M)

French pharmaceutical company Servier and Insilico Medicine announced on January 4 an AI-driven oncology drug discovery collaboration valued at up to $888 million in total potential payments.

Amgen & Disco Pharmaceuticals — Cancer Target Programs ($618M)

Amgen signed a second licensing deal during the week, partnering with Disco Pharmaceuticals on January 7 for cancer cell surface target programs. The collaboration is valued at up to $618 million.

Foresee & Primevera — MMP-12 Inhibitor Portfolio ($584.5M)

Foresee Pharmaceuticals licensed Primevera's MMP-12 inhibitor portfolio on January 8 in a deal worth up to $584.5 million. The transaction includes development, regulatory, and commercial milestones for the matrix metalloproteinase inhibitor program targeting fibrotic and inflammatory diseases.

Roche & MediLink Therapeutics — ADC License ($570M Upfront)

MediLink Therapeutics granted Roche an exclusive worldwide license (excluding China) on January 8 to develop and commercialize YL201, a B7H3-targeting antibody-drug conjugate for solid tumors. MediLink received $570 million in upfront and near-term milestone payments, with additional development, regulatory, and commercial milestones plus tiered royalties on ex-China sales.

Nimbus Therapeutics & Eli Lilly — Obesity Collaboration ($1.3B Potential)

Nimbus Therapeutics announced on January 6 a multi-year research collaboration and exclusive license with Lilly for a novel oral therapy targeting obesity and metabolic diseases. Lilly paid $55 million upfront and near-term, with Nimbus eligible for up to $1.3 billion in total milestones plus tiered sales royalties.

Boehringer Ingelheim & Variant Bio — AI Genomics Platform (>$120M)

Boehringer Ingelheim entered a collaboration with Variant Bio on January 6 valued at over $120 million. The partnership applies Variant Bio's AI-powered genomics platform to kidney disease research.

Amylyx & Gubra — GLP-1 Antagonist (~$54M)

Amylyx Pharmaceuticals licensed GLP-1 receptor antagonist assets from Danish company Gubra on January 8 in a deal valued at approximately $54 million.

Basilea & Prokaryotics — Antifungal R&D Pact ($48.5M)

Switzerland's Basilea and U.S. startup Prokaryotics formed a research collaboration on January 7 to develop a novel broad-spectrum antifungal for invasive fungal infections. Prokaryotics is eligible for up to $48.5 million in development, regulatory, and commercial milestones, plus low single-digit tiered royalties on sales.

Takeda & Halozyme — Enhanze Technology License

Takeda licensed Halozyme's Enhanze technology on January 9 for subcutaneous delivery of vedolizumab, its inflammatory bowel disease therapy.

Pierre Fabre & Iktos — AI Generative Design Platform

French pharmaceutical company Pierre Fabre partnered with Iktos on January 9 to apply the AI company's generative molecular design platform to oncology drug discovery. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Daiichi Sankyo & GENESIS Pharma — Vanflyta Regional License

Daiichi Sankyo signed an exclusive license and supply agreement on January 7 with GENESIS Pharma for the FLT3 inhibitor Vanflyta (quizartinib) in 13 Central and Eastern European countries. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Clinical Trial Collaborations

Exelixis & Natera — MRD-Guided Phase 3 CRC Trial

Exelixis and diagnostics firm Natera announced on January 7 a collaboration on the pivotal Phase 3 STELLAR-316 trial in resected colorectal cancer. The trial will use Natera's Signatera circulating tumor DNA assay to identify patients with molecular residual disease for enrollment and to monitor response.

Exelixis will assess its MET inhibitor zanzalintinib with or without immunotherapy in MRD-positive Stage II/III CRC patients.

OncoAssure — Prostate Cancer Diagnostic Validation

Ireland's OncoAssure partnered with a leading U.S. medical center on January 7 to validate its prostate cancer diagnostic test in a clinical study.

Strategic Partnerships & Alliances

Lexeo Therapeutics & Johnson & Johnson — Cardiac Gene Therapy Delivery

Lexeo Therapeutics and J&J's cardiovascular group entered a research alliance on January 8 to explore localized cardiac delivery of AAV gene therapies. The collaboration combines Lexeo's expertise in cardiac gene therapy with J&J's circulatory support technologies, including Impella heart pumps. The partnership is structured as a joint research effort with no upfront payments disclosed.

STORM Therapeutics & AlidaBio — RNA Modification Biomarker Alliance

UK-based STORM Therapeutics formed a strategic collaboration on January 8 with AlidaBio to support STORM's Phase 1/2 trial of STC-15, a METTL3 inhibitor. AlidaBio will apply its EpiPlex and EpiScout NGS platforms to profile m6A RNA methylation changes in patient samples. The collaboration is structured as an in-kind partnership without cash exchange.

Ping An Biomedical & Future Biotechnology Group — Strategic Investment

Ping An Biomedical signed a non-binding Investment Memorandum on January 9 with Future Biotechnology Group outlining a staged strategic investment and potential acquisition. Ping An will make an initial $30 million cash investment, followed by subsequent acquisitions totaling $60 million in cash and stock through 2028.

Performance earn-outs are tied to Future Biotech achieving revenue targets of RMB 750 million, 1.3 billion, and 2.3 billion in 2026, 2027, and 2028 respectively.

Samsung Acquires Xealth (~$115M)

Samsung's acquisition of Xealth (~$115 million, completed October 2025) positions the company as Apple's primary competitor in clinical wearable integration. Xealth's platform, embedded in EHRs at 500+ U.S. hospitals including Advocate Health and Banner Health, allows physicians to prescribe and manage digital health apps directly through clinical workflows. Samsung showcased this integration with its "Care Companion" and "Intelligent Care" vision at CES 2026.

NVIDIA & Siemens — Industrial AI Expansion

NVIDIA and Siemens expanded their partnership to build what they call the "Industrial AI Operating System." For healthcare, Siemens' Dotmatics Luma platform can unify billions of data points across instruments and labs for AI-driven drug discovery. The companies claim this approach could help therapies reach patients up to 50% faster at lower cost. NVIDIA also released its Clara platform with 455,000 synthetic protein structures through GitHub and Hugging Face for protein design, drug synthesis planning, and RNA structure prediction.

Venture Capital Financings

Biotech venture funding during the first week of 2026 totaled over $1.5 billion across multiple nine-figure rounds.

Parabilis Medicines — $305M Series F (Oncology)

Parabilis (formerly FogPharma) closed a $305 million Series F on January 8 to fund pivotal trials of its lead Helicon polypeptide zolucatetide (FOG-001), a β-catenin inhibitor for desmoid tumors.

The round was co-led by RA Capital, Fidelity, and Janus Henderson, with new investors including Frazier Life Sciences and Soleus Capital. Existing backers including venBio, Cormorant, Nextech, ARCH, GV, T. Rowe Price, General Catalyst, and others also participated.

AirNexis Therapeutics — $200M Series A (Respiratory)

AirNexis launched on January 9 with a $200 million Series A to develop AN01 for COPD. Frazier Life Sciences created the company and led the round, with co-investors including OrbiMed, Goldman Sachs Life Sciences (Alternatives), SR One, Longitude Capital, and Enavate Sciences.

The company is led by CEO Maria Fardis, Ph.D., former CEO of Lassen Therapeutics.

Soley Therapeutics — $200M Series C (AI/Oncology)

Soley Therapeutics raised $200 million in its third-round financing on January 9. Surveyor Capital (Citadel) led the round, joined by HRTG Partners, RWN Management, and existing backers including Doug Leone Family Fund, Breyer Capital, and GordonMD Global.

Soley's platform uses computer vision and AI to analyze cell stress responses and identify novel cancer drug candidates.

Alveus Therapeutics — $160M Series A (Obesity)

Alveus Therapeutics emerged from stealth on January 8 with $159.8 million to develop therapies for long-term weight-loss maintenance. New Rhein Healthcare, Andera Partners, and Omega Funds led the round, with participation from Sanofi Ventures.

Led by CEO Raj Kannan (former I-Mab CEO), Alveus is advancing ALV-100, a bifunctional GLP-1/GIP modulator, into Phase 2 trials, with ALV-200 (amylin analog) at IND stage.

MEDIPOST — $140M Growth Equity (Cell Therapy)

Korean stem cell therapy company MEDIPOST secured $140 million in growth equity on January 9. The financing supports the company's lead program in osteoarthritis and expansion of its regenerative medicine platform.

SonoThera — $125M Series B (Genetic Medicine)

SonoThera announced its launch with $125 million in Series B funding at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference on January 8. The company is developing ultrasound-mediated genetic medicine delivery technology.

Diagonal Therapeutics — $125M Series B (Rare Disease)

Diagonal Therapeutics secured $125 million in Series B funding on January 9 to advance DIAG723, an ALK1 agonist antibody for hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) and pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Sanofi Ventures and Janus Henderson co-led the round, with participation from Deep Track Capital, EcoR1 Capital, Logos Capital, Balyasny Asset Management, and Woodline Partners.

EpiBiologics — $107M Series B (Protein Degradation)

EpiBiologics raised $107 million on January 8 for its EpiTAC protein degrader platform. GV (Google Ventures) and J&J Innovation – JJDC co-led the round, with new investors Novartis Venture Fund, Aulis Capital, Avego Capital, and Samsara BioCapital joining existing backers.

The platform uses bispecific molecules to tag and send disease proteins to lysosomes for destruction. Proceeds will fund IND and Phase 1 for EPI-326, an EGFR degrader targeting refractory cancers.

Rakuten Medical — $100M Series F (Oncology)

Rakuten Medical obtained $100 million in Series F funding on January 9 to advance its lead photoimmunotherapy ASP-1929 toward U.S. approval. TaiAx Life Science Fund (Taiwan) led the round.

Proceeds will accelerate enrollment in the Phase 3 ECLIPSE trial of ASP-1929 (an IRDye-700DX dye conjugated to cetuximab) plus Keytruda in first-line head and neck cancer. Rakuten aims to file for FDA approval by 2028.

Corsera Health — $80M Series A (Preventive Cardiology)

Corsera Health raised $80 million on January 7 for its preventative heart disease platform. Forbion and Population Health Partners co-led the round, with participation from co-founder John Maraganore, Ph.D. (former Alnylam CEO).

Corsera is developing an AI-driven tool to predict lifetime ASCVD risk and annual siRNA therapies to reduce that risk. Lead programs include COR-1004 (PCSK9-targeting siRNA, now in Phase 1) and COR-2003 (AGT-targeting siRNA) for LDL and blood pressure reduction.

Poplar Therapeutics — $50M Series A (Immunology)

Poplar Therapeutics raised $50 million in Series A funding on January 7 to develop anti-IgE immunotherapy for food allergy.

Biobeat Technologies — $50M Series B (Medtech)

Israeli medtech company Biobeat Technologies secured $50 million in Series B funding in early January to advance its cuffless blood pressure monitoring technology and wearable vital signs devices.

Initial Public Offerings

Aktis Oncology — $318M IPO

Aktis Oncology completed the first biotech IPO of 2026 on January 8, raising $318 million gross. The clinical-stage radiopharmaceutical developer upsized its offering, pricing 17.65 million shares at $18.00 each at the top of the $16–$18 range.

Eli Lilly agreed to purchase approximately $100 million of the offering as a cornerstone investor—Lilly is a development partner of Aktis, and its participation enabled the upsizing. Post-IPO, Aktis had an initial market cap of approximately $1.0 billion. Shares began trading January 9 on Nasdaq under ticker "AKTS" and closed the first week approximately 24% above the IPO price.

Proceeds will advance Aktis's two miniprotein radioconjugate therapies targeting Nectin-4 and B7-H3 in solid tumors through Phase 1 and expand the pipeline. Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan served as lead bookrunners with BofA and SVB Securities as additional bookrunners.

IPO Filings

Several companies filed for public offerings during the week:

Debt & Equity Financings

Foghorn Therapeutics — $50M Equity Financing

Foghorn Therapeutics raised $50 million in an equity financing with warrants on January 9. BVF Partners, Deerfield, and Flagship Pioneering participated in the offering.

LifeMD — $50M Revolving Credit Facility

Telehealth platform LifeMD secured a $50 million revolving credit facility from Citizens Bank on January 6. The asset-based lending facility includes $30 million committed plus a $20 million accordion, carrying a floating rate of approximately SOFR+6.5%.

Bankruptcies & Restructurings

Apple Tree Partners Portfolio Wind-Down

The biotech sector entered 2026 managing the fallout from the largest coordinated bankruptcy filing in recent memory. On January 1, 2026, nine or more Apple Tree Partners-backed entities filed simultaneously for Chapter 11 protection in Delaware Bankruptcy Court.

Entities filing included:

• Evercrisp Biosciences, Inc. — genetic medicines delivery technology (Case 26-10000-LSS)
• Nine Square Therapeutics, Inc. — ATP-backed therapeutics company
• ATP Life Sciences Ventures, L.P. — investment vehicle
• Apertor Pharmaceuticals, Inc. — ATP portfolio company
• Initial Therapeutics, Inc. — ATP portfolio company
• Five additional affiliated entities

All entities are represented by Potter Anderson & Corroon LLP before Judge Laurie Selber Silverstein. The filings represent a systematic wind-down of ATP's struggling portfolio following the venture firm's own Chapter 11 filing in December 2025 to resolve an LP funding dispute.

Red Queen Therapeutics, another ATP portfolio company, filed Chapter 11 on December 15, 2025 as part of the same process.

Other Financial Distress

Tessera Therapeutics (January 8): The Flagship-founded genetic writing company announced 90-employee layoffs and pipeline prioritization.

NKGen Biotech (January 5): The cell therapy company secured emergency $25.8 million secured financing from AlpineBrook Capital amid negative free cash flow of approximately -$20.88 million, providing critical runway to continue operations.

CES 2026: Clinical and Diagnostic AI

Enterprise Deployments

The most significant health AI story at CES 2026 was clinical-grade diagnostic AI reaching deployment scale.

Noul's miLab CER, a South Korean cervical cancer diagnostic system, automates the entire screening process in 20 minutes with 93.9% sensitivity and 97.8% specificity, comparable to expert pathologists. The compact device replaces approximately 25 manual preparation steps and targets the WHO's 2030 goal of 70% global cervical screening coverage.

Perimeter Medical Imaging AI announced a systemwide agreement with Intermountain Health to deploy its S-Series OCT imaging system across 34 hospitals and 400 clinics. The FDA-cleared device provides surgeons with real-time, cellular-level visualization during breast cancer surgery at 10X the resolution of X-ray. The company's investigational ImgAssist AI received FDA Breakthrough Device Designation and a $7.4 million grant for pivotal trials.

Oracle Health unveiled its AI-native electronic health record system featuring voice-first interaction and clinical AI agents that "dynamically surface critical insights and queue suggested actions." Oracle's partnership with OpenAI will power a patient portal that translates medical records into plain language.

OTITON's Doctor in House earned back-to-back CES Innovation Awards for its ENT diagnostic AI trained on 55,000+ clinical cases from Korean university hospitals. The system identifies seven ear, nose, and throat conditions using a medical-grade endoscope and infrared thermometer.

CES 2026: AI Health Monitoring and Predictive Wellness

The NuraLogix Longevity Mirror analyzes a 30-second selfie video to gauge metabolic and cardiac health and estimate "physiological age." The computer vision algorithm detects subtle facial blood flow patterns and scores metrics like heart health and metabolic efficiency on a 0-100 scale.

Samsung previewed a Brain Health feature for Galaxy wearables aimed at early detection of cognitive decline. By analyzing everyday behaviors—walking gait, voice patterns, typing, and sleep quality—the system looks for subtle deviations associated with early dementia research.

Abbott's Libre Assist is a generative AI-driven feature that helps people with diabetes (or anyone tracking glucose) predict how different foods will affect their blood sugar.

CES 2026: Advanced Wearables

Garmin's Venu 4 smartwatch earned an Innovation Award Honoree for adding a Health Status dashboard that highlights when metrics like heart-rate variability, respiration, or oxygen saturation deviate from one's baseline. The Venu 4 can run up to 12 days on a charge.

Withings announced it will integrate Abbott's Lingo biowearable sensor into the Withings app. Starting Q1 2026, users will see real-time glucose trends in Withings' health app.

Withings BodyScan 2 is a "smart scale" elevated to a home health station. This scale can measure over 60 metrics—from ECG readings and arterial stiffness to segmental body composition—in about 90 seconds.

Phonak's Audéo Infinio Ultra hearing aid features a dedicated on-device AI chip (DEEPSONIC processor) that performs real-time sound scene analysis using machine learning.

CES 2026: Non-Invasive Glucose Monitoring

Three companies launched serious challenges to the continuous glucose monitoring paradigm:

Sensura, a Singapore-based startup, debuted a hyperspectral sensing platform in both handheld and wearable form factors—no finger pricks, no implanted sensors. The company presented at both CES and the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference.

PreEvnt announced human clinical trials for its breath-based glucose alert system targeting Type 2 diabetics who don't use insulin. The isaac System tracks patterns and sends emergency contact alerts, pursuing FDA pre-submission with a late 2026 launch target.

This competitive pressure prompted Abbott and Dexcom to emphasize AI integration over hardware. Dexcom CEO Jake Leach appeared alongside Oura CEO Tom Hale on a panel titled "Always On: How Continuous Health Data is Transforming Care."

CES 2026: Smart Home Health Devices

Smart Toilets and Bathroom Analytics

The Vovo Smart Toilet "Neo" integrates a built-in urine analysis sensor in the bowl. Each time the user uses the toilet, it can analyze the urine for health indicators and display results on a wall-mounted screen. The system includes an AI named "Jindo the Dog" that alerts family if the toilet hasn't been used in over 12 hours.

Vivoo's clip-on Smart Toilet device can retrofit any standard toilet. Using an optical sensor (no strips needed), it measures urine concentration to track hydration levels. Vivoo touts that its device can last over 1,000 flushes on one charge. Wired noted that tracking one's pee might be the newest wellness obsession.

Y-Brush's Halo smart toothbrush contains gas sensors to analyze breath for health diagnostics. The AI "SmartNose" can detect volatile organic compounds linked to over 300 conditions from diabetes to liver disease.

Beauty and Environmental Wellness

L'Oréal unveiled an LED facial mask claimed to be the world's thinnest, flexible enough to hug the skin and target areas like under the eyes.

Sunbooster clips to your laptop or monitor and bathes you in near-infrared light as you work, substituting wellness benefits of natural sunlight.

Allergen Alert is a pocket-sized lab targeting the 70+ million people with food allergies or intolerances. The handheld device can detect common allergens like lactose or gluten within minutes using a disposable test pouch. Built on technology from diagnostics company bioMérieux, it's FDA-approved and being trialed by Michelin-starred chefs to prevent cross-contamination.

CES 2026: Women's Health and Longevity Tech

The Vivoo FlowPad has built-in microfluidic sensors that measure hormone levels (specifically follicle-stimulating hormone, FSH) in menstrual fluid. By directly sampling biomarkers in real time, this pad can help women track fertility, ovulation, and flag hormonal imbalances or infections without a separate test. After use, the pad is scanned with a smartphone app to upload the data.

Amorepacific presented Skinsight electronic skin co-developed with MIT that analyzes real-time skin-aging signals to predict aging patterns.

The Longevity Megatrend

In his opening keynote, CTA's Brian Comiskey identified "the trend of longevity" as a defining megatrend of 2026, fueled by breakthroughs in weight management drugs and personalized medicine. With obesity treatments like GLP-1 agonist drugs surging in popularity (an estimated 12-18% of U.S. adults had tried GLP-1 medications by late 2025), tech companies see opportunities in the "GLP-1 ecosystem."

CES 2026: Mental Health and Relaxation Technology

The Reconcept mental health pod tilts the user into a zero-gravity reclined position, plays soothing nature sounds (like bird song), and delivers a gentle massage.

Home Therapy Booth 2.0 features a one-person wellness booth equipped with an AI "mental coach." Users step in for a private guided session that senses their stress levels (via voice and biometrics) and responds with tailored breathing exercises, meditation guidance, or calming light/sound therapy.

An'An is a biomimetic AI-powered panda cub robot designed to provide emotional support and companionship. Using affective computing and tactile sensors to respond to hugs and touch, it's pitched as a therapeutic tool for seniors facing loneliness or children with autism.

Samsung's C-Lab presented Stress Solution, which creates personalized soundscapes for mental health support based on individual stress profiles.

Voice Biomarkers: Emerging Frontier

AI can now identify moderate-to-severe depression from 25 seconds of speech with 70%+ accuracy by analyzing pitch, jitter, shimmer, and speech rate.

Canary Speech outlined five 2026 trends for vocal biomarker technology, emphasizing its integration into routine healthcare workflows.

CES 2026: Sleep Tech

Sleep technology moved from passive tracking to active intervention:

Stareep's SmartSleep Ecosystem is "the world's first AI-powered mattress system that actively intervenes during sleep" with real-time pressure mapping, breathing-responsive support, and AI-driven firmness adjustments.

Earable Neuroscience's FRENZ Brainband combines consumer EEG with AI-powered audio therapy for sleep and cognitive performance. The company joined the National Sleep Foundation's SleepTech Network.

Sleepal AI Lamp uses millimeter-wave radar, thermal, and acoustic sensing to track multiple sleepers without body contact.

CES 2026: Assistive Tech and Rehabilitation

The Ascentiz H1 Pro walking exoskeleton uses AI-adaptive motors to augment the user's leg movements. Its modular, belt-based design keeps the device streamlined—users can wear it relatively comfortably under clothing, and it's robust enough (dust- and water-resistant) for outdoor use.

Cosmo Robotics' Bambini Kids is the first over-ground pediatric exoskeleton with powered ankles, aimed at children ages ~2½ to 7 with neurological disorders such as cerebral palsy. It won a CES Innovation Award.

.Lumen (Romania) showcased AI wearable glasses for blind users featuring six cameras, infrared lasers, and NVIDIA GPU for navigation without canes, guide dogs, or audio cues.

AgeTech and Dementia Care

The AARP AgeTech Collaborative showcased 22 startups (nearly one-third AI-focused) with sessions on "AI and Aging: Designing for Longevity and Personalization" featuring Microsoft AI's Dominic King.

Wonderful Platform unveiled Avadin, described as the world's first "Physical AI Care Operating System" for senior and dementia care. Its CareTwin engine models memory, behavioral patterns, emotional states, and safety risks, integrating AI robotics, digital twin intelligence, and VR/AR cognitive programs. The company is targeting partnerships with UnitedHealth, Humana, Aetna/CVS, and the VA.

CES 2026: Enterprise Health Tech

Abbott showcased biowearables like its Freestyle Libre CGMs and Lingo sensors, AI-driven heart monitors, and next-gen rapid diagnostic tools. The company hosted panel discussions (featuring tennis legend Serena Williams alongside Abbott's medical device chief) touting the "power of biowearables."

Insulet made its CES debut with an "immersive" demo of Omnipod 5, framing it not as a medical device per se, but as "liveable technology" for automated diabetes management.

WONTECH introduced PETRA & LIME, a contactless vital-sign monitoring system using cameras to measure patients' heart rate, respiration and other signals from a distance. They also showed ELLISE, a laser + electrical stimulation platform for non-invasive pain therapy.

CES 2026: Innovation Award Winners (Digital Health)

Naqi Logix won Best of Innovation for neural interface earbuds enabling hands-free, voice-free device control through facial gestures and brainwaves.

Earflo Inc. debuted the first non-invasive treatment device for negative middle ear pressure causing ear infections in children as young as two years old.

NeuroTx (Seoul) presented WillSleep, a non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation device with clinical results showing 82% improvement in sleep quality and 80% reduction in insomnia symptoms.

Korean companies dominated the awards: 168 of 284 CES Innovation Awards went to Korean firms, with 81% being SMEs.

CES 2026: International Exhibitors

CES 2026: Emerging Themes

Consumer EEG Goes Mainstream

Industry analysts positioned 2026 as "the year brainwaves join biosignal tracking."

Embedded Health Testing in Everyday Products

From Tracking to Active Intervention

The most innovative products no longer just collect data—they actively modify the user's environment, sleep surface, or daily routines in real-time based on AI analysis.

Consumer-to-Clinical Integration

Samsung's Xealth acquisition, Withings' Abbott partnership, and Oracle's AI-native EHR demonstrate that wearable data is flowing into clinical workflows at scale.

Market Commentary

Total venture funding during the week exceeded $1.5 billion, concentrated in oncology (Parabilis, Soley, Diagonal, EpiBiologics, Rakuten), obesity and metabolic disease (Alveus, Nimbus-Lilly), and platform technologies (AI-driven discovery, protein degradation, genetic medicine delivery).

Several rounds were led by crossover funds and corporate venture arms. The Aktis IPO's upsized pricing and aftermarket performance may indicate improving conditions for public offerings, particularly for companies with strategic partnerships.

Licensing activity was notable, with AI-driven drug discovery partnerships attracting large potential milestone packages. The Lilly-InduPro, Servier-Insilico, and Nimbus-Lilly deals collectively represent over $3 billion in potential payments for AI-enabled platforms.

The Apple Tree Partners bankruptcy cluster—with nine entities filing simultaneously—illustrates the risks inherent in biotech's capital-intensive development model.

The FDA's deregulation of wellness AI at CES 2026 marks a policy inflection point. The 2026 competitive landscape will be determined less by regulatory clearances and more by data quality, AI accuracy, and ecosystem integration. Lines between consumer wellness and clinical care continue to blur—major healthcare companies (Abbott, Medtronic, Oracle) now share the stage with startups. Devices like CGMs, once reserved for diabetics, are being repurposed for everyday fitness and nutrition tracking.

Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer, financial adviser, or medical professional. The content presented here is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute investment, legal, or medical advice. Always consult qualified professionals before making investment decisions. All information is derived from public sources and may have changed since publication of this article.