Technological advances in health care for Google, Apple

(HealthDay)—Google and Apple have launched developments in health care technology, according to a report published Sept. 20 in Medical Economics.

Google has announced the launch of the California Life Company (Calico), which aims to help people live longer by researching health, wellness, and aging-related disease. The company, whose chief executive officer and founding investor is Apple chairman Arthur D. Levinson, may be a joint venture with Apple.

In other Apple-related developments, the newest version of the iPhone 5 allows the M7 coprocessor to detect motion, and could facilitate more sensitive and accurate monitoring of a user's running, walking, driving, and sedentary activities. In addition, the microprocessor can access accelerometer, gyroscope, and compass data, without depleting battery life.

"The less work a user has to do to track their fitness, the more data they will track and the more people will do fitness tracking," Jason Jacobs, founder and chief executive officer of the RunKeeper app, told MobiHealthNews. "This will give companies like us an even bigger opportunity to help these users improve their fitness over time."