Google founds a new company to battle age-related illnesses
GOOGLE plans to set up a new company called Calico, headed by Apple and Genentech chairman Art Levinson, to develop technologies to tackle health issues related to aging.
The new company will be run separately from Google, the world’s largest internet search company, with a focus on issues including life-threatening diseases and problems affecting mental and physical agility due to aging.
“While this is clearly a longer-term bet, we believe we can make good progress within reasonable timescales with the right goals and the right people,” Google chief executive Larry Page said yesterday.
Google did not provide any other details about the new company, including where it will be based, how many employees it will have or whether Page would have a direct role in its operations.
The online giant’s investment in Calico is “significant” and is designed to allow the organisation to invest in different projects, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday.