Dive Brief:
- Google and the American Heart Association's joint research project "1 Team, 1 Vision, $50,000,000" will focus on new treatments and preventative measures for heart disease. Each company will contribute $25 million to the 5-year project.
- The research team will consist of clinicians, designers, engineers, researchers, and scientists with a project leader the companies hope to have selected by mid-February.
- Google Life Sciences CEO Andrew Conrad said heart disease is the leading cause of death worldwide and, "seems ripe for new innovation" and disruptive, novel thinking, as reported in iHealthBeat.
Dive Insight:
The American Heart Association (AHA) estimates 17.5 million people die from cardiovascular diseases annually, with coronary heart disease accounting for 7 million deaths. Google has announced several life-science research projects, including a launch last year of a baseline study to collect data on individual's genetic and physical traits to establish a description of a healthy human being, according to The Wall Street Journal.
AHA CEO Nancy Brown said, "We live in an era today with resources that haven't been available until now." The Wall Street Journal stated such resources include inexpensive genetic sequencing and advances in computer science, like Google's expertise in sensors, data analytics and machine-based learning.
The project leaders said they hope a focused, multidisciplinary effort with long-term funding will speed research progress in the cardiovascular disease field.