The most revolutionary aspect of the third Sustainable Development Goal is to achieve universal health coverage, a goal that many consider too ambitious and difficult to achieve or measure. Achieving the goal requires investment in health systems or, seen in another way, this global challenge can be translated into a business opportunity.
Technology has become a main tool in the evolution of the health area, and will continue to advance radically with the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), which demands investment.
Investment opportunities in the health market are increasing more and more, affecting the growth rates of the countries. It is estimated that in 2020 the global investment in artificial intelligence applied to health was around 68,000 million dollars (mdd), of which 42,200 million dollars came from private investors.
By 2021, the market reached 383.3 billion dollars and it is estimated that it will close this year at around 450 billion dollars, maintaining a high year-on-year growth rate over the next five years.
Each advance in health technology is an investment opportunity in powerful projects that, from the point of view of the health sector, generates interesting returns. Investment in technology is present in the discovery of new drugs, in the interpretation of radiological images, and even in the analysis of a patient’s genome; It is very useful in the detection of tumors and for those who have some type of physical or mental impediment; and allows the monitoring of elderly people who live alone.
Without hesitation, technology has entered medicine. So much so that around 70% of businesses are expected to adopt at least one type of advanced technology by 2030, and by then AI could generate an additional $13 trillion in economic output, increasing global GDP by 1.2% per year.
Technology in health can, on the one hand, facilitate the emergence of organizations of massive scale and, on the other hand, allow small players, and even individuals, to undertake projects that are now carried out mainly by larger companies.
The third Sustainable Development Goal proposed by the UN is a great opportunity to invest and obtain returns, while supporting the cause of health in the world. But, according to the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), “traditional sources of public financing are not enough. Fortunately, in the private sector, we see a shift away from traditional investment towards models that not only generate returns, but also seek to have a positive impact on society and the environment.”.
