Your Google phone could one day diagnose heart disease and more

Google looks to be deepening its focus on health tech with the acquisition of a startup that specializes in health-monitoring apps for smartphones.

Seattle-based startup Senosis was founded by Shwetak Patel, a professor of computer science and electrical engineering at the University of Washington. The company makes apps that use the sensors in your phone for health monitoring.

Among those is BiliCam, an app that can be used to detect jaundice in newborns. The disease is typically known for its effect on the color of a baby’s skin, turning it yellow. 

This app uses a combination of a smartphone’s camera and flash to measure the amount of bilirubin (the yellow compound that causes jaundice) in the blood by examining wavelengths of light absorbed by the skin. 

Another Senosis app that uses the smartphone’s camera is HemaApp, which measures the levels of hemoglobin (the protein responsible for carrying oxygen) in the blood. An accurate reading of hemoglobin measurement can help to identify a wide range of health conditions including anemia, malnutrition and heart disease. 

Thinking deeply about health

The camera isn’t the only part of the smartphone that Senosis utilizes. It also has an app called SpiroSmart that uses the phone’s microphone to measure the strength of a user’s breath. If accurate, this app could be used to identify and track conditions such as asthma, cystic fibrosis and heart disease.

The acquisition was first reported by GeekWire, citing “sources familiar with the deal”. Neither Google nor Patel have commented on the deal at time of writing. 

The acquisition is the latest in Google’s move into the world of digital healthcare. It already has Google Fit, its fitness tracking system, and its parent company Alphabet has a few different health tech endeavours, including its health division, Verily, and Calico, a research and development company dedicated to studying how biology affects lifespan.

Additionally, its artificial intelligence project DeepMind includes the DeepMind Health branch, which has created a medical alert app called Streams for the British National Health Service.

Via The Next Web

Andrew London

Andrew London is a writer at Velocity Partners. Prior to Velocity Partners, he was a staff writer at Future plc.

Latest in Phones
Product shots for the Xiaomi Poco X7 Ultra review
I spent a month testing the Xiaomi Poco F7 Ultra, a top-end mid-ranger that masquerades as a flagship
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge on display the January 22, 2025 Galaxy Unpacked event.
All three rumored Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge colors shown off in ‘official’ images
Anker Zolor Power Bank 10,000mah
My favorite portable charger goes everywhere with me, and it's under $13 at Amazon right now
Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max Hands on
I'm actually glad the new Siri with Apple Intelligence is delayed, and here's why we've got Apple's AI problem backwards
The iPhone 16 Pro on a grey background
iPhone 17 Pro tipped to get 8K video recording – but I want these 3 video features instead
Google Pixel 9 on blue background with big savings text overlay
Forget Amazon, the best Pixel 9 deal is at Mint Mobile today - get $400 off without an annoying trade-in
Latest in News
cheap Nintendo Switch game deals sales
Nintendo didn't anticipate that Mario Kart 8 Deluxe was 'going to be the juggernaut' for the Nintendo Switch when it was ported to the console, according to former employees
Three angles of the Apple MacBook Air 15-inch M4 laptop above a desk
Apple MacBook Air 15-inch (M4) review roundup – should you buy Apple's new lightweight laptop?
Witchbrook
Witchbrook, the life-sim I've been waiting years for, finally has a release window and it's sooner than you think
Amazon Echo Smart Speaker
Amazon is experimenting with renaming Echo speakers to Alexa speakers, and it's about time
Shigeru Miyamoto presents Nintendo Today app
Nintendo Today smartphone app is out now on iOS and Android devices – and here's what it does
Nintendo Virtual Game Card
Nintendo reveals the new Virtual Game Card feature, an easier way to manage your digital Switch games