China’s 15th Five-Year Plan has made healthcare technology a national strategic priority, with medtech explicitly named in two of the 10 emerging-industry development priorities and 3 of the 8 frontier-technology domains. According to the plan, medtech is a key area of focus, with brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) and advanced medical devices amongst the 10 designated emerging-industry priorities.
The BCI focus covers next-generation electrode and chip hardware, signal-decoding algorithms and Mandarin-language neurolinguistic databases, with applications spanning disease treatment, motor rehabilitation and health monitoring.
Medtech priorities target ultra-high-end CT, high-field MRI, precision radiotherapy and intelligent surgical robots, alongside implantables for cardiovascular intervention and orthopaedics. They also touch life sciences and biotechnology, brain science and brain-like artificial intelligence, and critical disease prevention, treatment and drug research and development.
China’s BCI sector is already advancing quickly, with the country ranking first globally in noninvasive BCI mass production, second in the number of human invasive BCI implants, and second in BCI-related peer-reviewed publications. This progress is notable.
AI adoption in medtech is moving from policy to practice, with applications spanning screening and diagnosis, imaging, clinical decision support, treatment and rehabilitation. The sector has averaged roughly 20 funding events per year over the past four years, with applications spanning clinical rehabilitation, psychiatric treatment, and neuromodulation to consumer health uses like sleep monitoring.
Other policy directions flagged include continued optimisation of Volume-Based Procurement and pricing mechanisms, a bigger role for commercial health insurance in covering innovative products, expanded healthcare investment in county- and community-level care, and stronger supply-chain localisation. These changes will impact the medtech industry.
Medtech companies should assess where they can participate across the BCI ecosystem and build early partnerships with hospitals, universities and domestic innovators, whilst ensuring AI investments demonstrate measurable value to support regulatory approval and reimbursement. They must be strategic.
China continues to invest in medtech, driving significant advancements in the field, with potential applications in areas like disease treatment and health monitoring. The country’s focus on BCIs and advanced medical devices is expected to drive growth in the sector.
The government’s support and investment in the sector are expected to drive innovation and growth. As the country continues to advance in areas like BCIs and advanced medical devices, new technologies and applications will emerge, with potential benefits for patients and the healthcare industry as a whole.
Medtech companies should focus on building partnerships and ensuring AI investments demonstrate measurable value, in order to support regulatory approval and reimbursement. This will be key to driving growth and innovation in the sector, and to realizing the potential benefits of medtech in China.
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