Three key trends likely to shape medtech in 2026
By Namrita Negi, head, Life Sciences Knowledge Center, and Alex Blair, partner, Deloitte Consulting LLP
This year, medtech executives may need to navigate a landscape defined by rapid innovation, evolving care-delivery models, and strategic realignments (see Deloitte’s 2026 Life Sciences Outlook). We expect the following three trends could have a significant impact on the sector in 2026:
Trend #1: Building the portfolios of the future
Portfolio re-construction is increasingly centered on high-growth, high-margin therapeutic areas that align with evolving patient needs, technological capabilities, and enterprise priorities (see Resurgence in medtech M&A). Many medtech companies appear to be shifting capital and resources toward highly focused markets such as pulsed field ablation, structural heart disease, and neuromodulation, among others. These are some of the fastest growing segments in the industry, and they collectively represent substantial growth opportunities for medtech companies.i This strategic pivot can be seen in recent divestitures and acquisitions (see Medtech M&A outlook) with total deal value reaching $32.6 billion by the end of the third quarter of 2025.ii Simultaneously, the sector is experiencing margin pressure, which has prompted some companies to launch aggressive restructuring and cost-efficiency programs alongside portfolio realignment.iii Some companies have divested underperforming or non-core assets while optimizing their cost bases.iv Strategies to consider can include streamlining operations, consolidating facilities, and reducing overhead to free up capital for higher-growth opportunities. Such tactics can also help satisfy shareholders who are seeking higher returns.v
Our analysis: Sustainable growth is often tied to how well an organization manages its portfolios to balance risk and reward while maintaining financial discipline. This often involves not only strategic divestitures and acquisitions but also efficient and fast separations, the integration of acquired entities to unlock synergies, and parallel cost optimization to fund growth investments. Some companies might also need to navigate the complexities of shareholder expectations, which involves transparency and accountability, to help determine how capital is allocated. To gain a competitive edge, companies will likely need to balance a dual strategy. They should consider increasing operational efficiency while making sound commercial investments. These investments should focus on improving market access and reimbursement strategies. They should also optimize channel strategies, enhance provider education and training, and generate real-world evidence to demonstrate both clinical effectiveness and productivity. Companies that successfully balance cost discipline with strategic growth investments should be well positioned to deliver sustained shareholder value.
Trend #2: Adapting to transformational care-delivery shifts
The medtech industry could experience a fundamental reconfiguration of care delivery as procedures that have historically been confined to a hospital setting start to take place in ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs). The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently announced its 2026 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) Payment System final rule.vi The new rule adds more than 500 procedures to the ASC Covered Procedures List. This includes AFib-treating cardiac catheter ablation, among other high-acuity cardiology and spine procedures that have previously been performed exclusively in hospital settings.
Our analysis: The addition of more than 500 procedures, particularly high-acuity cardiology and spine cases, could represent a substantial expansion of the addressable market for ASC operators, which could alter reimbursement dynamics and procedural volume distribution for medical devices. This shift could prompt some medtech companies to fundamentally rethink their commercial and product-delivery models to address the distinctly different needs of ASC customers. ASCs typically operate with different cost structures, purchasing behaviors, and value propositions compared to hospitals. For example, medtech devices and technologies must be compatible with streamlined workflows, predictable scheduling, and rapid patient turnover at ASCs. Medtech companies should also consider investing in training and support services that accommodate ASC staffing patterns and operational constraints. This can help ensure that clinicians can effectively use medical devices in streamlined outpatient settings. This shift also involves a fundamental recalibration of sales strategies. ASCs often feature physician-owners or smaller administrative teams as primary decision-makers rather than centralized hospital procurement committees. This could lead sales teams to develop ASC-specific value propositions. They might also deploy territory models that reach more dispersed outpatient locations and equip field teams with information about ASC economics and per-procedure ROI calculations.
Trend #3: Strengthening data governance to reap the benefits of AI
The medtech industry is witnessing a transformative shift as AI becomes integral to innovation and operational strategies (see Can agentic AI improve workflows and margins in medtech?). AI can be more than a technology investment. It can be a core capability that can drive advancements across the organization. Many medtech companies are embedding AI across their operations, transforming how they deliver care and how they operate their businesses. However, execution and adoption across the industry remains uneven, with significant challenges in data quality, regulatory compliance, and change management.vii As such, some industry leaders are focusing on investments in critical enablers first—including data governance, talent, and robust processes—to establish a strong foundation to fully harness the potential of AI and to help ensure applications are safe, compliant, and effective. This involves creating centers of excellence, developing AI playbooks, and standardizing data-management practices across markets.
Our analysis: AI capability is rapidly becoming the primary competitive differentiator in medtech. The gap between leaders and laggards will likely compound over time as data and processes mature, as talent grows, and as organizational learning expands. This could also accelerate consolidation as companies that lack the resources needed to build comprehensive AI capabilities become acquisition targets. A key determinant of success might be the ability to balance speed with responsibility. Companies should try to move fast enough to avoid competitive obsolescence while maintaining governance rigor that ensures patient safety, data privacy, and regulatory compliance. AI systems should be designed for quality and should also be easily auditable. An effective AI strategy should include clear problem statements, explicit regulatory and privacy inputs, documented verification and validation protocols, and formalized human roles. This can make it easier for auditors to trace how AI outputs are reviewed before they affect patients or regulatory submissions. Success will also likely depend on centralizing and standardizing core business processes to enable scalable AI solutions in what has traditionally been a highly decentralized sector. Treating data as a governed and shared asset, solving interoperability and ownership issues, and partnering with big tech on infrastructure—while keeping sensitive data inside the organization’s walls—could be important for effectively and compliantly scaling the use of AI and other emerging technologies.
Conclusion
As medtech companies enter 2026, executives that can effectively realign their organization’s investments, respond quickly to emerging outpatient care opportunities, and build robust data capabilities will likely be well positioned to drive innovation, improve patient outcomes, and stay competitive.
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Endnotes
iBased on a Deloitte analysis of data from Evaluate Medtech-medical device insights
iiQ3 2025 medtech licensing and venture report, J.P. Morgan, October 2025
iiiBased on a Deloitte analysis of data from S&P Capital IQ Pro, S&P Global
ivJohnson & Johnson announces intent to separate its orthopaedics business, October 14, 2025
vMedtronic expands board to chase M&A, Fierce Biotech, August 19, 2025
vi2026 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and Ambulatory Surgical Center Final Rule, CMS, November 21, 2025
viiMedtech 2026: AI shows patient care potential, but regulation remains tricky, Medtech Insight, January 14, 2026
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