Life Science Market Insights: 2025 Trends and Purchase Drivers from AGBT
Industry professionals gathered at the recent Advances in Genome Biology and Technology (AGBT) conference in Marco Island, Florida to discuss the latest innovations in genomics and biotech. We surveyed attendees to gain insights into market predictions for 2025 and to understand the key drivers behind purchasing decisions for life science tools.
Market Predictions for 2025
Emerging Applications Leading Growth
In our survey of industry professionals, multiomics and spatial biology emerged as the clear frontrunners expected to see the largest growth in 2025, with multiomics slightly edging out spatial biology as the top prediction.
This indicates a strong industry shift toward integrated approaches that capture multiple layers of biological information simultaneously, reflecting the growing recognition that single-modality approaches often provide incomplete pictures of complex biological systems.
Research Focus Areas
When asked which research areas would experience the largest growth in 2025, oncology took a decisive lead, followed by human genetics:
The dominance of oncology suggests continued robust investment in cancer research, likely driven by promising advances in targeted therapies, immunotherapies, and the integration of genomic profiling into clinical decision-making.
Sales and Investment Outlook
Interestingly, despite predictions for growth in specific applications and research areas, the overall sales outlook for life science tools in 2025 appears cautious. Nearly half of respondents predicted that sales would remain flat, with about a third anticipating a decline.
However, the investment outlook appears slightly more optimistic. Most respondents predict investments will either increase slightly (<5%) or remain stable, suggesting careful but continued commitment to funding the sector despite potential economic headwinds.
NGS Instrument Manufacturers: Clear Winners Emerging
When asked to identify the long-term winners in the NGS instrument manufacturing space, Illumina maintained its dominant position despite recent market challenges:
The strong showing of Illumina, alongside significant support for players like PacBio, Ultima, ONT (Oxford Nanopore Technologies), and Element, indicates a dynamic competitive landscape with both established and emerging technologies expected to capture market share.
Purchase Drivers: What Influences Buying Decisions?
Our survey also explored the factors that drive purchasing decisions for life science tools. Understanding these drivers provides valuable insights for both vendors and researchers navigating the complex landscape of scientific instrumentation.
Ranking of Purchase Drivers
We asked respondents to rate the importance of various factors in their purchase decisions. The results reveal a clear hierarchy of importance:
Technology Validation Leads Purchasing Considerations
Technology validation by industry leaders emerged as the most important factor influencing purchasing decisions, scoring an average of 3.4 out of 5. This highlights the conservative nature of scientific purchasing, where proven performance and peer adoption significantly reduce perceived risk.
Innovation Leadership Matters
A company's reputation as an innovation leader ranked second in importance (3.20/5), indicating that while validation is critical, buyers also value working with companies they perceive to be at the cutting edge of technology development.
Corporate Culture: Not Just a Nice-to-Have
Interestingly, a company's culture and mission scored relatively high (3.03/5), ranking third among purchase drivers. This suggests that life science professionals increasingly consider corporate values and purpose when making purchasing decisions.
Market Alignment Less Critical Than Expected
Perhaps surprisingly, a company's alignment with market trends received the lowest importance rating (2.80/5). This suggests that professionals in this space may be less influenced by market momentum than by concrete evidence of performance and innovation.
Conclusion: Strategic Implications
The AGBT survey results paint a picture of a market poised for targeted growth in integration-focused technologies like multiomics and spatial biology, particularly in oncology research. However, the cautious outlook on overall sales suggests selective investment rather than broad industry expansion.
For life science tool providers, these insights highlight the importance of:
Demonstrating practical validation through industry leaders and peer-reviewed publications
Maintaining innovation leadership while still delivering proven reliability
Articulating corporate mission and values that resonate with research professionals
Focusing on high-growth application areas like multiomics and spatial biology
Targeting oncology and human genetics research markets where growth is expected to be strongest
As we move into 2025, these insights provide a valuable roadmap for strategic planning in what appears to be a selective but promising market environment.