Google and Fitbit will work together on driving health forward as the two companies have officially announced that a collaboration is underway. For Fitbit this means utilizing Google’s Cloud Healthcare API, which could lead to more personalized care for patients from doctors as the API would allow Ftibit to deeper integrate itself into the healthcare system and link Electronic Medical Records with its own user data, thus giving doctors a better picture of the patient’s health in real-time in addition to the collected data from the records, which in turn could lead doctor’s to provide overall better care..
Google’s Cloud Healthcare API will also be powering Fitbit’s Twine Health platform that it acquired through its purchase of Twine Health earlier this year. According to Fitbit the Cloud Healthcare API will make it easier for doctors and patients to work together on health improvement. Fitbit also says the collaboration will allow it to ramp up the efficiency of its operations and its speed to market with new devices and services. For consumers that translates to the company being able to release devices at a more rapid pace. This would mean that Fitbit could scale products faster and release them to market quicker than before, giving consumers more options to choose from
While part of this collaboration is about helping Fitbit advance its integration into the healthcare system it’s also about advancing the future of wearables. Though no specifics were mentioned about any particular products, Fitbit does state that together, it and Google will be using the strengths that both companies are bringing to the table to “transform the future of wearables.” This suggests that at the very least Fitbit is optimistic and excited about what it can do with wearables products going forward now that it will have Google’s assistance in the cloud computing and data departments. Fitbit says that by collaborating with Google and leveraging its Cloud Healthcare API, it will allow the company to maintain its standards on protecting user data.