What is it about?
As the world’s population grows older, we face massive economic and healthcare challenges. We analyzed 56 global power players—including governments, tech companies, and research centers—to see what they are actually doing about it. We found that while almost everyone is focused on fixing hospitals and medical research (geroscience), they are largely ignoring the "invisible" factors that keep people healthy as they age. Specifically, areas like financial security, housing, transportation, and loneliness receive very little attention.
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Why is it important?
This research exposes a dangerous "medical-only" bias in the longevity industry. While medical breakthroughs are vital, they won't work if older adults lack stable housing, digital skills, or social connections. By highlighting these neglected areas, our work provides a roadmap for investors and policymakers to direct capital toward more holistic, cross-sector solutions that ensure people don't just live longer, but live better.
Perspectives
This study acts as a "reality check" for the longevity landscape. It moves the conversation from theoretical frameworks to real-world priorities, showing exactly where the private sector and governments are misaligned. For digital health innovators, it identifies massive "blue ocean" opportunities in neglected domains like digital literacy and social networking for older adults.
Wasu Mekniran
ETH Zurich
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: The longevity landscape: mapping stakeholder priorities for healthy aging among high-income countries, BMC Public Health, December 2025, Springer Science + Business Media,
DOI: 10.1186/s12889-025-25498-8.
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