Google X Staff Meet With FDA Pointing to Possible Medical Device

Bloomberg reports that employees from Google X, which is known for its secretive research and projects, have met with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), sparking speculation that Google is working on a new product that includes biosensors for use in contact lenses.

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At least four members of Google’s staff attended the meeting, some of which have connections with Google X. The workers have also carried out research on sensors which can be used in contact lenses that help monitor biological data. On the agency’s public calendar you can see that Google met with FDA representitives who are responsible for regulating eye devices and diagnostics for heart conditions.

Companies from both the fields of technology and medicine have trouble meeting the demands of federal oversight. It was only in November last year that the FDA made the Google-backed company 23andMe, stop sales of its personal gene testing because it hadn’t received the agency’s approval.
Despite this obstacle Google’s CEO Larry Page has said the company is committed to making bets on research and development, even if the projects don’t necessarily produce large profits and revenue.
“Our main job is to figure out how to obviously invest more to achieve greater outcomes for the world, for the company,” Page said during a call with analysts last July. “And I think those opportunities are clearly there.”
There have been no details revealed as to what Google’s meeting with the FDA was regarding but Jennifer Rodriguez, a spokesperson for the agency, confirmed that the meeting did take place.
Babak Parviz, who worked on the Google Glass project, has spoken about putting displays on contact lenses, that includes ones that monitor health.
“Noninvasive monitoring of the wearer’s biomarkers and health indicators could be a huge future market,” Parviz wrote in a 2009 paper titled “Augmented Reality in a Contact Lens”.
Image:Guardianlv Source: Bloomberg

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