Healthcare 2035: MED-EL Survey Explores the Global Patient Demand for AI, Robotics, and Digital Care Solutions in Hearing Care

July 7, 2025 – Innsbruck, Austria: Scheduling a doctor’s appointment with a single click, receiving treatments tailor-made by Artificial Intelligence (AI), or welcoming innovations in surgery with the help of precision robotics. According to a new market research study* by MED-EL, a leading pioneer in hearing solutions, this is what the people around the world are hoping to see in the next decade of healthcare. The survey results uncover global public expectations for a revolution in how healthcare is designed, delivered, and experienced.

• Tech Takes the Lead: Digital tools, AI, and robotics dominate as the top healthcare priorities globally.
• Generational Gaps: Younger generations focus on digital health and sustainability, while older groups prioritize robotics and AI.
• Regional Priorities: Brazil favors digital health, Germany highlights AI, and France places emphasis on robotics for future healthcare.

MED-EL’s survey asked a simple but forward-looking question: “What will matter most in healthcare over the next decade?” The answers reveal a future shaped by cutting-edge technology, personalized solutions, and sustainability – key forces driving the evolution of modern healthcare.

What Matters Most to People and Providers?

Digital Health Tools and AI: Half of respondents (50%) rank at-home digital health tools (e.g., online appointments) and AI-driven personalized care as top healthcare trends, emphasizing the need for accessible and tailored solutions.

• Intuitive, Advanced Medical Product Designs: Nearly 1 in 2 (47%) highlight the importance that medical product of the future are user-friendly yet scientifically advanced, balancing simplicity and efficiency with the latest technological developments.
• Robotics and Precision Tools: Close to 46% value the potential of robotics in surgery and precision tools to help improve accuracy and outcomes for people undergoing medical procedures, underlining their transformative potential in modern medicine.
• Adaptable Manufacturing for Personalized Customization: Similarly, 46% believe that new manufacturing techniques play a key role in creating customized medical devices tailored to individual needs, signalling a shift toward more responsive and flexible healthcare solutions.
• Sustainability in Healthcare: One-third (33%) support eco-friendly practices and waste reduction in healthcare, reflecting the rising importance of sustainability in the sector.

Looking Deeper: Key Trends Across Age, Gender, and Regions

The results show demographic and regional differences in priorities:

• Generational Insights: Younger respondents (18–24 years old) prioritize digital tools like virtual appointments (52%), but show less interest in surgical robotics (34%). Older generations (55+) place greater importance on robotics (55%) and advanced medical products (51%) to address complex health challenges. Sustainability was another divider, with younger people (35–37%) valuing it compared to just 29% of 45–54-year-olds.
• Gender Perspectives: Both men and women agree on the importance of digital health tools (50 and 51%). However, men express stronger interest in artificial intelligence (54% vs. 46%). Women, in contrast, lean slightly more toward sustainability (34% vs. 32%) and user-friendly product designs (48% vs. 46%), emphasizing the importance of functionality and environmental consciousness in healthcare solutions.
• Regional Highlights: Brazil leads in support for digital health tools (62%) and sustainability (43%), while Germany prioritizes AI-driven personalized healthcare (60%). Interest in manufacturing techniques for customized health products was strongest in Austria and Spain (50% each). In contrast, Italy (27%) and Slovakia (31%) show less focus on sustainability, and Belgium has the lowest global interest in advanced medical product designs (39%).
  

MED-EL’s Vision for the Future

The survey findings strongly align with MED-EL’s mission to transform hearing healthcare through impactful, future-ready innovation. “As this survey highlights, the future of healthcare will be guided by innovations that are not just ground-breaking but also centered on real-world needs, easy to use, and transformative for generations to come,” says Dr. Patrick D’Haese, MED-EL’s Corporate Director of Awareness and Public Affairs. “At MED-EL, we are making this vision a reality through our collaborative technologies in AI, surgical robotics, advanced manufacturing, and user-centered design, ensuring every innovation improves lives and creates equitable access to healthcare.”

Key themes from these findings are further explored in MED-EL’s newly released Hearing Beyond Tomorrow: Exploring the Future of Hearing Healthcare Insights Report. This comprehensive vision outlines how technology – from precision surgical robotics and AI integration to advanced manufacturing – can empower healthcare users and confront global challenges like inequality, accessibility, and stigma. MED-EL is not simply predicting the future of healthcare – it is shaping it with data-driven strategies and leading-edge technologies. 


*The online research was carried out in January 2025 by Research Without Barriers in ten countries: Austria, Belgium, Brazil, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Romania, Slovakia, and Spain. Total number of participants = 10,044.

Notes to Editors

You can download the full Hearing Beyond Tomorrow: Exploring the Future of Hearing Healthcare insights report in English. Journalists are invited to schedule 1:1 interviews with MED-EL’s experts to discuss the insights and ideas presented in the report. Contact [email protected] to arrange an interview.

About MED-EL

MED-EL Medical Electronics, a leader in implantable hearing solutions, is driven by a mission to overcome hearing loss as a barrier to communication and quality of life. The Austrian-based, privately owned business was co-founded by industry pioneers Ingeborg and Erwin Hochmair, whose ground-breaking research led to the development of the world’s first micro-electronic multi-channel cochlear implant (CI), which was successfully implanted in 1977 and was the basis for what is known as the modern CI today. This laid the foundation for the successful growth of the company in 1990, when they hired their first employees. To date, MED-EL has more than 3,000 employees from around 90 nations and 30 locations worldwide.
The company offers the widest range of implantable and non-implantable solutions to treat all types of hearing loss, enabling people in 139 countries enjoy the gift of hearing with the help of a MED-EL device. MED-EL’s hearing solutions include cochlear and middle ear implant systems, a combined electric acoustic stimulation hearing implant system, auditory brainstem implants as well as surgical and non-surgical bone conduction devices. www.medel.com 

CEO

Doz. DI Dr DDr med. h.c. Ingeborg Hochmair

Press Contact

PR & Corporate Communications
MED-EL Medical Electronics
Fürstenweg 77a
6020 Innsbruck
Austria
T: +43 5 7788
E: [email protected]