Johnson and Johnson today announced, that Ethicon, a medical device company in the Johnson & Johnson family of companies has tied up with Google to build a robotic surgical platform to benefit surgeons, patients and health care systems.
As a part of the definitive agreement reached by the two, the companies will bring together “capabilities, intellectual property and expertise” to create an innovative robotic-assisted surgical platform capable of integrating advanced technologies with the goal of improving health care delivery in the operating room. The collaboration was facilitated by Johnson & Johnson Innovation in California.
Robotic-assisted surgery is a type of minimally invasive surgery that uses technology to give surgeons greater control, access and accuracy during the surgical procedure while benefitting patients by minimizing trauma and scarring, enabling accelerated post-surgical healing.
Both Google and J&J are seeking to develop new robotic tools and capabilities for surgeons and operating room professionals that integrate best-in-class medical device technology with leading-edge robotic systems, imaging and data analytics.
All in all, the deal’s current version suggests that the mentioned robotic platform will be used to assist human surgeons and not replace them. In any case, this would still be a major upgrade to current systems, wherein robotic platforms are still not considered dependable enough so as to employ them in performing complex surgeries.
The closing of the transaction is subject to clearance under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act and other customary closing conditions. The transaction is expected to close during the second quarter of 2015. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Via Business Insider
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