Healthcare's 3 Biggest Bets: M&A, AI Agents, and GLP-1s

Good morning, ! This week, we explore 2026 healthcare M&A sentiment, examine how the healthcare industry is rapidly adopting multi-agent AI systems, and analyze why the oral GLP-1 market is projected to reach $137.4 billion by 2035.

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DATA DIVE

Healthcare M&A Is Back—But This Time, Execution Wins

Healthcare M&A sentiment is improving, but the market remains far more disciplined than the dealmaking boom of 2020–2021.

According to McKinsey, U.S. healthcare deal volume reached $1.31 trillion in 2025, up from $1.23 trillion in 2024, signaling growing confidence that the market has largely bottomed out. Yet Healthcare150's latest research suggests the biggest barriers to accelerated activity aren't financing conditions—they're Regulatory Scrutiny (37%), Valuation Gaps (32%), and a Shortage of Scalable Assets (31%).

Our survey found that Smaller Platform Deals and Add-On Acquisitions (24%) have become the most common M&A strategy, while investors are placing greater emphasis on Operational Diligence before closing transactions. In fact, among healthcare M&A professionals, 50% identified deeper operational diligence as their top adaptation to current market conditions.

The same theme appears post-close. Respondents ranked Technology & Data Integration (26%) and Physician Alignment & Talent Retention (26%) as the two most important drivers of M&A success, ahead of traditional financial considerations.

The takeaway: healthcare M&A is recovering, but this cycle looks different. Buyers are still pursuing growth, but they're underwriting deals through the lens of execution, integration, and operational resilience. In today's market, the most attractive assets aren't simply the fastest-growing—they're the most scalable and operationally prepared. (More)

HEALTHTECH CORNER

Multiagent AI Moves Beyond Experimentation

Healthcare organizations are rapidly advancing their use of multiagent AI systems, but adoption strategies vary significantly by subsector. According to a recent survey of U.S. healthcare leaders, 46% of respondents are deploying focused, function-specific multiagent solutions, making it the most common implementation model across the industry.

However, priorities differ by business model. Clinical-care organizations are the most likely to focus on targeted use cases, with 59% favoring function-specific deployments, likely reflecting the need for controlled, high-confidence applications in patient-facing environments. Meanwhile, payers are leading adoption of end-to-end workflow automation, with 41% implementing multiagent systems across broader processes. In contrast, healthcare services and technology companies appear to be pursuing more ambitious AI strategies, with 48% leveraging multiagent systems for cross-functional use cases such as knowledge synthesis and decision support.

The findings suggest the industry is moving beyond AI pilots and into operational deployment. As organizations gain confidence in agent-based systems, the next phase of adoption will likely center on scaling from narrow applications to enterprise-wide workflow orchestration. (More)

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TREND TO WATCH

The Rise of Oral GLP-1s

The next major growth story in healthcare may not be injectable weight-loss drugs—it could be oral GLP-1 therapies. According to industry forecasts, the global oral GLP-1 market is expected to expand from $6.8 billion in 2025 to $137.4 billion by 2035, representing an impressive 35% CAGR over the period.

This projected growth reflects strong demand for more convenient treatment options for obesity and diabetes. While injectable GLP-1 medications have reshaped the market, oral alternatives could significantly broaden patient adoption by reducing barriers related to injections, storage, and administration.

The market is expected to accelerate rapidly after 2030, growing from $30.6 billion in 2030 to more than $101 billion by 2034. As pharmaceutical companies race to develop and commercialize oral formulations, competition is likely to intensify across the metabolic health landscape.

For healthcare investors and operators, the emergence of oral GLP-1s represents a potentially transformative shift that could expand access, improve adherence, and unlock the next phase of growth in obesity care. (More)

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