Google X employees meet w/ FDA staff in charge of biosensors, mobile medical apps

Bloomberg reports that a recent meeting between Google’s secretive Google X team and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration raises “the possibility of a new product that may involve biosensors.” While it’s not that surprising that the Google X team behind Glass would meet with FDA staff that regulate eye devices, it’s also said to have met with those in charge of diagnostics for heart conditions. Bloomberg adds that four of the Google employees in attendance “have done research on sensors, including contact lenses that help wearers monitor their biological data.”

It’s interesting to note that the FDA staff would also regulate contact lenses as one of the employees at the meeting was Google’s Brian Otis:

Otis is on leave to Google from the University of Washington in Seattle, where he is an associate professor in the electrical engineering department, according to the university’s website. Otis has worked on biosensors and holds a patent that involves a wireless powered contact lens with a biosensor.

Bloomberg points out that Otis is a colleague Google employee Babak Parviz, who worked on the Google X team on Glass and other initiatives. That reminded us of the Solve for X talk from Parviz embedded below on “building microsystems on the eye” where he described embedding tiny sensors into contact lenses and various medical applications:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6g581tJ7bM]

While the FDA is calling the meetings a simple meet and greet, its calendar shows Google also met with staff in charge of marketing approvals for devices and mobile medical apps.