Gliimpse, a Personal Health Data Startup, Is Apple's Latest Acquisition
Given Apple's interest in personal health, it should come as no surprise to hear that the company has purchased Gliimpse: a personal health startup.
The news comes from Fast Company, which explains that Apple made the acquisition earlier in the year. Gliimpse, the publication explains, “has built a personal health data platform that enables any American to collect, personalize, and share a picture of their health data.” It was co-founded in 2013 by a guy who formerly worked as a systems engineer at Apple in the late 1980s.
Gliimpse's aim, to build a single, common format for U.S. health records, is an admirable one: doctors don't use a single universal record, and there isn't even a common file format. Fast Company explains:
The acquisition will bolster Apple’s efforts in digital health. In recent years, Apple has delved into the sector with a range of services (HealthKit, CareKit, and ResearchKit) that allow patients, clinicians, and researchers to access important health and wellness data via a range of mobile devices. That's in line with Gliimpse's mission of uniting disparate streams of health information.
Apple, of course, has established HealthKit, ResearchKit, and CareKit, which allow users to take control of their personal health, participate in medical research, and manage their own care, respectively. It also launched the Health app, which works alongside its Apple Watch to collect user data including steps and heart rate. Plus, in the near future, we've been told to expect a “revolutionary” health tracker from Apple.
Of course, Apple is keeping quiet about this latest acquisition, and it's not been formally announced online. We'll keep you posted with further information if we receive it.
