Apple partnership with medical device maker sign of more to come

Earlier this year Apple CEO Tim Cook was spotted wearing a glucose monitor that many believed linked up with the Apple Watch.

At Apple’s WorldWide Developers Conference in California, the company announced that it would indeed offer users the chance to monitor their glucose levels. The company has partnered with medical device maker Dexcom and will link that company’s glucose monitoring device with the Apple Watch.   

The news comes as no surprise as Apple have been steadily positioning itself as a dedicated provider of health and fitness software, namely through its Apple Watch Series. However, whilst Apple has previously marketed itself towards lifestyle and fitness enthusiasts, it has yet to enter the medical device sector.

More so, the company was previously reported hiring a small team of biomechanical engineers to develop sensors that monitor the body’s blood sugar levels. The team are said to be working on non-invasive sensors that wouldn’t require users to prick their skin for blood testing.

Apple’s partnership with Dexcom is made possible by the Bluetooth API that the company has developed. This allows other companies to link their products with the Watch, and many have started picturing the future possibilities. Indeed, Dexcom is already reaping the benefits of the partnership with a jump in its stock of more than 6% after the announcement.

CNBC have reported that developers are seeing the partnership as a promising sign, and companies are hoping for interchangeable watch bands filled with health sensors.

Speaking about the possibilities, Brandon Ballinger, founder of health-tracking app Cardiogram, said: “This new bluetooth API may seem like a small detail, but with it, Apple is laying the right technical foundation."