About the list

This year, TIME launched the new TIME100 Companies: Industry Leaders lists, expanding its annual TIME100 Most Influential Companies list. The Industry Leaders lists span 20 different sectors and highlight a total of 200 companies for setting new standards and helping push their industries forward.

Organizations in the health and life sciences sector include pharma and biotech, medical devices, healthcare services, health data and research, and other health-related companies. These companies were selected for their influence on healthcare innovation.

The 10 most influential health and life sciences companies of 2026

According to TIME, the 10 most influential health and life sciences companies of 2026 are:

• Novo Nordisk: Novo Nordisk is a major manufacturer of GLP-1 medications, and in 2025, the company launched the first oral GLP-1 medication for weight loss. Compared to injectable GLP-1 medications, GLP-1 pills are cheaper to manufacture and distribute. Both Novo and Eli Lilly have also agreed to reduce the price of their GLP-1s to as low as $149 a month for people on Medicare and Medicaid through an agreement with the Trump administration.
• Genentech: Over the last 50 years, Genentech has helped build modern biotechnology, including breakthroughs such as synthetic insulin and the first personalized cancer treatment. The company also continues to innovate with new treatments. In March 2025, FDA approved Genentech's TNKase for acute ischemic stroke, making it the first new stroke treatment approved in almost 30 years.
• Sprout Pharmaceuticals: In 2015, FDA approved Sprout's drug Addyi to treat low sexual desire in premenopausal women, making it the first drug approved for the condition. Ten years and an additional review later, FDA expanded Addyi's approval to include postmenopausal women under 65. According to Sprout CEO Cindy Eckert, the latest approval "signifies not only scientific recognition of a medical condition that affects millions of women that had been previously discussed only with stigma, not science, but also a cultural recognition that we value sexual health as part of women's overall wellness, their longevity, and their well-being."
• Tempus: Eric Lefkofsky, the cofounder of Groupon, launched Tempus to combine technology and AI with cancer treatment after his wife was diagnosed with breast cancer. The company's flagship xT test has been approved by FDA and uses genomic results with clinical data to help oncologists choose targeted cancer treatments and match patients to trials. The company has since expanded beyond cancer care into cardiology, radiology, and neuropsychiatry.
• Beam Therapeutics: Beam developed a new base DNA editing technology that allows scientists to chemically convert one DNA letter to another without breaking the original strand. This technique allows for more precise genetic changes than traditional CRISPR editing. Currently, Beam has a promising sickle cell program and an advanced in-vivo program targeting a genetic lung and liver condition known as alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency.
• Biolinq: In September 2025, Biolinq won FDA de novo classification for Shine, a coin-sized patch that can read glucose levels with a needle-free intradermal sensor array that sits below the skin's surface. The device has an integrated LED display that provides real-time feedback and can function with or without a smartphone. Currently, the company is planning a limited U.S. rollout in 2026 to gather real-world data and expand manufacturing capacity.
• Epic Systems: Epic is the largest EHR company in the United States, and health systems using its software care for over 280 million people nationwide. The company recently launched several new AI assistants for clinicians, patients, and administration. It is also developing new medical foundation models trained on its Cosmos database, which includes almost 300 million anonymized patient records. "The promise of the [EHR] isn't just a gathering space for information," said Epic CMO Jackie Gerhart. "It really is meant to be a predictive space."
• HistoSonics: HistoSonics is known for its pioneering method of destroying liver tumors without surgery, radiation, or needles. In 2023, FDA approved the Edison Histotripsy System, which used focused ultrasound pulses to target and liquefy tumors without damaging the surrounding tissue. So far, around 3,000 patients worldwide have been treated with the Edison system. Last October, the company raised $250 million to expand internationally and conduct clinical trials on additional cancer types.
• Maven Clinic: Maven Clinic was launched in 2014 to help provide digital health services for women's health. Originally offered to employers as a health benefit for employees, Maven recently opened to the public in March. In addition to general virtual clinical services, people who join the service can access specific care packages on metabolic health, GLP-1 weight-loss medications, and more. "We built a care model that uniquely serves women, and starts to get them a bigger seat at the table when it comes to their own health care," said Maven founder Kate Ryder.
• Medtronic: Currently, only 5% of the 60 million annual soft tissue procedures are performed with minimally invasive robotic assistance, but Medtronic wants to make this the norm. In December 2025, Medtronic's Hugo robotic-assisted surgery platform received FDA clearance. The platform uses modular, cart-mounted arms to provide surgeons with greater precision through smaller incisions. A companion AI system called Touch Surgery can also record procedures and allow remote proctors to watch live. Currently, Hugo is being used in 35 different countries and tens of thousands of cases.

Related resources

• The State of the Healthcare Industry in 2026
• The executive's field guide to disruptive innovation
• Enterprise-wide leadership: 2 ways to foster a culture of collaboration and risk-taking
• The executive's role in fostering resilient, adaptive leaders
• Lessons from the C-Suite resource library