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GE startup GenWorks’ rural India healthcare push

For years, medical device makers have tried to take healthcare to the farthest corners of India, where most of the population lives. Most attempts have had little success. Now, GE is giving it another shot

05/12/18

Gayathri Vaidyanathan

Rural Indians do not value healthcare above jobs, education or other priorities

That’s made it difficult for medtech companies to sell to tier 2, 3 and 4 towns

In 2015, GE launched GenWorks, an independent startup that would do only rural India sales

GenWorks has doubled sales for GE in three years, but it needs to ensure recurring revenue to stay in the game

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For about a decade now, the big three medtech companies—Wipro GE Healthcare, Philips Healthcare and Siemens Healthineers—have desperately tried their luck in rural India. And had little success. They’ve made repeated attempts to sell everything from ECGs to X-rays and infant warmers to the rural population. So, when S Ganeshprasad, the then-director at GE, spotted…

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