First Session: Technological innovation as a driver of development in Health

The first session of the 5th Spain-India Forum was titled "Technological Innovation as an Engine for Development in the Healthcare Sector" and consisted of an engaging dialogue on opportunities for scientific and technological collaboration in artificial intelligence, biotechnology applied to health, digital health, and biomedicine.

Moderated by Robin Singh, director of ACCIÓ in Mumbai, the discussion brought together leading experts from both countries: Alba Jené, coordinator of the Bioinformatics Unit at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center; Rutuja Pol, partner at Ikigai Law; and Rahul Singh, founder of GrowBeyond. Together, they offered a comprehensive overview of the regulatory challenges, business opportunities, and transformative potential of technology applied to healthcare.

In his opening remarks, Robin Singh highlighted Barcelona's role in the innovation sector and its capacity as a bridge between Spain and India, a country he considered "the most exciting market in the world today" in the field of innovation and startups. The conversation revolved around three key themes: the role of governments in creating digital infrastructure, the dynamism of the entrepreneurial ecosystem, and the need to build trust around new healthcare technologies.

Alba Jené, an expert from the Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC), presented the institution's progress in developing digital twins of the heart. This technology allows for the simulation of specific cardiac conditions using personalized data. "It's not about replicating the entire human body," she pointed out, "but about modeling specific organs to treat specific pathologies." These digital twins, created from magnetic resonance imaging and clinical data, are already being used in clinical trials, although their widespread application is still in the research phase.

Alba Jené also explained how the BSC's AI Factory works. This is a European initiative that makes supercomputing resources available to SMEs and startups. Thus, he announced that "for the first time, Mare Nostrum 5 will be at the service of the European industrial ecosystem, especially in sectors such as health, where the impact can be transformative."

For her part, Rutuja Pol addressed the main obstacles facing Indian startups in the healthcare sector. Among these, she highlighted regulatory uncertainty, in addition to the lack of funding. "Since 2014, Indian startups have raised more than $150 billion, but only $9 billion has been allocated to the healthcare sector," she stated. Furthermore, the absence of a clear regulatory framework forces companies to rely on contractual agreements, which creates legal uncertainty and hinders the tracking of liability in the event of technological failures.

The partner at Ikigai Law also explained the workings of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, an Indian government initiative aimed at creating a national digital health ecosystem that connects patients, doctors, and medical institutions. This initiative has issued more than 800 million digital health IDs, allowing patients to access their medical records from anywhere in the country. This facilitates healthcare in both rural and urban areas. “The key lies in interoperability between public and private institutions,” Rutuja Pol asserted, “and in the use of community worker networks to educate the population about their digital rights.”

Rahul Singh, in turn, offered a business perspective on the entry of foreign companies into India, a country that “is not a market of 1.4 billion consumers: the actual target audience may be around 10% of that figure.” The founder of GrowBeyond emphasized the importance of having local partners aligned in values ​​and strategic vision, as well as the importance of understanding the country’s cultural and linguistic diversity, which directly impacts the adoption of technological products.

He also highlighted that advancements such as financial inclusion and the Unified Payment Interface (UPI) digital payment system have made India better prepared to receive cutting-edge technology. “The digital infrastructure has built trust in the system, which facilitates the entry of foreign companies.”

Speakers in the first session