Catalonia has a life and health sciences ecosystem that connects research, clinical activity, industry, and technology, with Barcelona as the great epicenter of the sector and the maximum exponent of the country's new talent. In fact, according to the BioRegion of Catalonia 2025 Report, the ecosystem comprises 1,650 companies, 93.4% of which are concentrated in the province of Barcelona. The country also hosts the headquarters of 17 of the 20 largest pharmaceutical and medical technology companies in the world. Overall, the sector generates 306,781 jobs. With these figures in hand, it is not surprising that the Mobile World Congress (MWC) of 2027 has decided to bet on opening a new health vertical within its facilities. "Barcelona has one of the most complete health and innovation ecosystems in Europe, with hospitals, research centers, companies, and talent capable of generating solutions with global impact," said Laia Corbella, CEO of Mobile World Capital Barcelona.
This Thursday, GSMA and Mobile World Capital Barcelona (MWCapital) presented this new vertical at the Barcelona City Council. Beyond Corbella, the event was attended by the Deputy Mayor for Economy, Housing, Finance, and Tourism, Jordi Valls, and the President and Director of GSMA Ltd, John Hoffman. The initiative will bring together healthcare professionals, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, technology companies, connectivity providers, start-ups, investors, policymakers, and researchers to showcase practical solutions and foster collaboration between the health and technology ecosystems. According to both entities, this health vertical is structured around four thematic axes.
Health AI & Data will address the development of secure and interoperable health data ecosystems to facilitate the adoption of artificial intelligence at scale; Reinventing Healthcare will explore connected, preventive, and patient-centered care models; Accelerating Health R+D will analyze the potential of artificial intelligence in drug discovery and personalized medicine; and From Healthcare to Health will address health equity, integrated care, digital therapies, and healthy aging. In addition, connectivity and scalability will be cross-cutting themes throughout the entire program. "By bringing together healthcare and clinical expertise with technology and connectivity at MWC and 4YFN, we can identify the most relevant challenges, establish new alliances, and accelerate the development of solutions that can be implemented at scale to improve healthcare and the patient experience," said Hoffman.
A list of top-level experts
This new health vertical aims to be an innovative benchmark, and therefore, the organizing entities have announced some of the highest-level speakers for the conferences. Among them stands out Rafael Grossmann, surgeon and digital health pioneer, recognized for performing one of the first documented surgical interventions with augmented reality through Google Glass. Also participating will be Lucien Engelen, CEO and founder of Transform.Health, with experience in transforming healthcare systems and patient-centered innovation. For her part, Professor Marlies P. Schijven, a reference in surgery and digital health linked to the University of Amsterdam, will address the application of digital technologies in clinical practice and medical training.
The program will incorporate Tara Donnelly in the digital transformation of the healthcare system, founder of Digital Care and former digital director of NHSX. Among the specialists who will participate in the different thematic areas are, in addition, Julio Mayol, Professor of Surgery at the Complutense University of Madrid, who will address the challenges of surgical innovation and the digital transformation of medicine; and Ricardo Baptista Leite, CEO of HealthAI, the Global Agency for Responsible Artificial Intelligence in Health, specialized in global health policies and the responsible use of artificial intelligence in the healthcare field. In addition, Mashudu Tshifularo, professor and head of the Department of Otorhinolaryngology at the University of Pretoria, who led the world's first middle ear reconstruction operation using 3D printed bones, will participate; Belén Delgado, Deputy Director General of the Secretary of State for Health; Henrique Martins, doctor at ISCTE Business School; and Ramon Maspons, Chief Innovation Officer at AQuAS.
As for 4YFN, it will feature speakers from the field of technology applied to health to complete its content program, including Lukas Saari, CEO and co-founder of Tandem Health, a company that develops an operating system for AI-native clinics, and José Faria, CTO and co-founder of Biorce, a company that uses artificial intelligence and automation to optimize and accelerate clinical trials.