Taiwan Excellence: Empowering the future of healthcare with Advanced Medical Technologies

Discover how Taiwan's commitment to innovation is shaping the future of healthcare.

Technological innovation is propelling the healthcare industry forward today. Taiwan, a leader in healthcare development, recognises the significance of the synergy between technology and healthcare, which has led to the growth of smart healthcare, estimated to be worth NT$60b (about US$1.9b) in 2024. 

To encourage innovation and accelerate the growth of the Taiwanese healthcare industry, the Ministry of Economic Affairs of Taiwan introduced the Taiwan Excellence Awards, which are conferred to the most innovative and outstanding designed and made in Taiwan products across diverse industries, including healthcare equipment and solutions that enhance the medical ecosystem. 

Today, Taiwan Excellence is a globally recognised award by the Taiwan International Trade Administration (TITA) and the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA). It showcases award-winning healthcare products at trade shows, representing the best of Taiwan in their industry. Sixteen leading companies in Taiwan’s MedTech industry participated in Medical Fair Asia 2024 in Singapore with the Taiwan Excellence Pavilion. The fair welcomed approximately 14,000 healthcare professionals from 45 countries over three days in September.

Centre, Mr Chen-yuan Tung, Representative of the Taipei Representative Office in the Republic of Singapore with some of the other speakers at the “Shaping the Future with Taiwan’s MedTech Innovation” industry session at Medical Fair Asia 2024 in Singapore. 

Innovation in the medtech sector

Taiwan Excellence recognises the well-deserved innovations of companies that benefit the supply chain and ecosystem of medical products. With cutting-edge technology and innovative medical solutions, consumers can lead a higher quality way of life, in line with Taiwan Excellence’s brand commitment to collaborate with leading industry leaders and provide first choice medical solutions to all. 

Over the years, Taiwan’s healthcare industry has taken steps to digitise and embrace new technologies in line with international standards. This includes the smart integrated circuit card technology that eases the process of digitalising patient records, as well as incorporating cloud technology into the healthcare system. 

Taiwan’s strength in its healthcare development stems from ongoing public-private partnerships or PPP collaborations between government, industry, academia, and research institutes to enhance the country’s industrial competitiveness in all sectors including healthcare development.  

These initiatives bring together many government-supported digitalisation efforts, local engineering expertise and a strong local ICT component supply chain, which has promoted innovative medical developments in Taiwan.

The future of smart healthcare

Leveraging AI to improve patient care is key to smart healthcare. The introduction of AI in diagnostics has benefitted the smart healthcare industry. This was demonstrated by three Taiwan Excellence leaders at Medical Fair Asia 2024: Acer Medical, V5med, and AmCad BioMed.

With the integration of AI, Acer Medical has developed an AI-assisted screening software for disease prevention. With one retina image, the VeriSee DR can detect diabetic retinopathy, whilst the VeriSee AMD can detect age-related macular degeneration. The retina image is captured by a fundus camera, a hardware that is available at Acer Medical - an ARC-1000, non-mydriatic automatic fundus camera. In addition, the VeriOsteo OP BMD is the first AI-assisted screening software which detects bone mineral density (BMD) abnormalities using X-ray images, predicting BMD and calculating a T-score to generate AI analysis results. Altogether, these solutions serve to enhance the medical care service industry by saving time and overcoming the limitations of screening patients to identify the need for preventive medicine. 

V5med is a leading innovator in medical imaging AI, focussed on developing advanced healthcare solutions through cutting-edge AI technology. The company’s state-of-the-art computer-aided detection (CAD) system significantly improves the accuracy and speed of lung cancer detection by enhancing nodule identification and delivering immediate reports. In addition, V5med is committed to advancing AI technologies for diagnosing pulmonary fibrosis, COPD, coronary artery calcification, and osteoporosis in the near future. 

AmCad BioMed offers ultrasound AI, enhancing clinicians’ diagnostic confidence and patient care. Its FDA-cleared and CE-certified technologies include AmCAD-UT for real-time thyroid nodule analysis, AmCAD-UO for Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) assessment, AmCAD-US for tissue composition analysis, and more. By providing data-driven insights, AmCad’s innovations empower healthcare professionals with greater efficiency and improved patient outcomes. 

Sustainability in healthcare

As countries strive to achieve the global sustainability goal of reaching net zero emissions, the global healthcare industry must also do its part, as it is responsible for about 5 percent of carbon emissions. Taiwan is addressing the issue by innovating and developing MedTech products not only for its own use but also for the rest of the world.

Taiwan hospitals work closely with Health Care Without Harm (HCWH), a global NGO and a leading voice in championing healthcare’s transformation toward decarbonisation, climate resilience, and sustainability. The 2023 Taiwan Health Sustainability Forum saw over 400 attendees, with discussions about sustainable medical management in an evolving environment, including the target of net zero emissions, hospital management practices, and more. 

The future of healthcare

In the future, the healthcare industry will prioritise patient-centric services and solutions driven by smart healthcare. Taiwanese MedTech companies have worked closely with hospitals and health facilities to develop innovative solutions addressing critical healthcare issues, such as cardiovascular disease, mental health, and the effects of an ageing society.

By better understanding the evolving needs of patients, Taiwanese MedTech companies will continue to develop and launch innovative products that better suit the needs of patients. Patients receive better care, processes are simplified, reducing waste, and MedTech companies obtain insights that will help them to develop better products and services to build an innovative and inclusive healthcare industry. 

Taiwan Excellence will continue to represent Taiwan's industries, showcasing Taiwan's strengths at global exhibitions and events. In addition to promoting Taiwan’s innovative MedTech products, Taiwan Excellence is eager to collaborate with overseas hospitals, the medical academia community and business partners to drive the future of healthcare.

More information on Taiwan Excellence Health and Precision Instruments Products can be found here.