MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Aug. 12 (UPI) -- Following an announcement regarding its restructuring under a new umbrella company called Alphabet, Google has announced that it is building small and affordable devices for diabetics.
Google said that it landed a deal with healthcare firm Dexcom to manufacture diminutive blood glucose monitoring devices for diabetic individuals. These continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) units will be wearable and the size of a dime. To accomplish the task, Google's Life Sciences division will be working with Dexcom as a subsidiary of umbrella company Alphabet.
In the working relationship, Dexcom will make an initial upfront payment of $35 million in common stock, up to $65 million in research and development in either cash or stock, and revenue-based royalties between five and nine percent once the devices are put up for sale and reach a certain level of revenue.
The announcement accompanies the Life Sciences department's announcement that it is working on smart nanoparticles that will move throughout an individual's bloodstream and forewarn of future health problems and diseases.
Andrew Conrad, the head of the department, said that the development of the CGM units will help Google's commitment to making health care proactive as opposed to reactive.
Diabetes continues to ravage the United States. In 2014, 29 million adults suffered from diabetes, up from 26 million in 2010.
