Blog 2: Emergence of the Biohacking Industry

        Since I was young, I’ve always taken care of my body. My parents instilled the value of lifetime health through encouraging activity and focusing on nutrition. As I read through this weeks assigned readings on global trends effecting industries, I glanced down at a small health tracking device on my wrist and considered how the recent boom in the biohacking industry is linked to each of the articles.

 

        Despite its sci-fi sounding name, biohacking is simply the industry of optimizing the human body and mind. While some of the more high tech portions of this sector include genetic manipulation and nootropics, the majority of companies have focused on dieting initiatives, such as ketogenic. In the past five years alone, the industry has seen growth of 445%.[i] In 2019 the biohacking industry saw a marker increase of 71% alone,[ii] setting itself up to be one of the top emerging industries over the next decade.

 

        As mentioned in “The four global forces breaking all the trends,” one of the main forces influencing biohacking’s emergence has been urbanization.[iii] As much of the historically poor world increases the standard of living and gains access to middle-class technologies, people will be able to shift their focus to self-improvement. Enter the biohacking industry. Being stronger, faster, and smarter is part of human nature. While maximizing performance and productivity was a concept born from the competitiveness in Silicon Valley, the idea quickly spread to consumers, increasing the demand for products that allow us to hack our bodies and minds. With the development of large corporations, such as Keto-Mojo, Neurosonic, ReCover, and Soylent, biohacking is quickly becoming more and more accessible to the consumer. World-wide desire for self-improvement in tandem with global urbanization sets up the biohacking industry for continued success in the future.

 

Another key force driving the market for biohacking is technology. Many biohacking companies utilize some sort of interface to allow consumers to interact with applications or websites for health and performance tracking. With two thirds of the world now having access to a mobile phone, success in the industry can simply mean creating an easy and accessible application interface for consumers to use. Companies such as Whoop, MyDNApedia, and Fitbit are focusing on creating more accessible technology through the implementation of applications.

 

Biohacking is an industry that will continue to develop as the world urbanizes. Continuing to utilize technology and play to the human desire for self-improvement will allow this industry to sustain increased growth moving into the future.

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[i] Biohacking Market – Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2020-2025 (3w Market News, May 2020)

[ii] Biohacking Market – Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2020-2025 (3w Market News, May 2020)

[iii] The Four Global Forces Breaking All the Trends (McKinsey Quarterly, April 2015)