Google Health's Impact

Three things all companies could learn from Google's achievements in health.

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"When strategising for the future, most companies realise that, in essence, 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗮 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀."

Welcome to "It's a Healthusiasm World ".

About every two weeks, this newsletter explores and explains how Health shapes the future of our world, and every business in it.

More than 5500 people joined this Healthusiasm movement already.

You can also join for free: www.christophejauquet.com/blog

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Google released its first-ever Google Health Impact Report in February 2025, highlighting the transformative role of technology in global health. Google believes technology can democratize access to high-quality healthcare, enhance scientific advancements, and ultimately help billions of people lead healthier lives. The report underscores Google's commitment to bringing credible health information to people everywhere, addressing critical health challenges, and developing technology that empowers its partners to drive meaningful change. By leveraging AI responsibly and prioritizing privacy and security, Google is working to create a healthier future for all. (see document)

Google's impact spans four key areas:

1. Advancing AI capabilities to improve care and accelerate scientific breakthroughs,

2. Delivering reliable health information and personal insights,

3. Transforming healthcare organizations to meet future needs, and

4. Building a thriving health ecosystem through collaboration with researchers, developers, governments, and communities worldwide.

But beyond these tactical achievements, it might be worthwhile to underline what Google is doing right and what other companies may learn from this as we advance in this Healthusiasm world.

In this newsletter, I'd like to address three distinct approaches that should inspire other companies to pursue health strategy endeavours.

1. Solving the Biggest Issues.

In the early 2000s, Dr. Google was perhaps the most significant innovation ever in health management. You can like or dislike this event, but it started solving one of the most significant issues in health: the unequal distribution of health information. Until that moment, health knowledge was in the hands of only a few people who graduated as doctors. The rest of the population was rather unaware of something they worried or cared so deeply about. It was a key moment in the Healthusiasm trend that allowed people to take some actions themselves. The consequent waves of mobile devices and wearables sparked another wave. Artificial intelligence will have the shockwave of a tsunami, putting accurate medical insights and tools into the hands of all.

Today, 5% of all Google searches are health related and YouTube Health (a science-verified health corner of the popular video platform) gathered 200 billion views. Tens of millions of people rely on their Fitbit for health-related insights. The magnitude of Google's impact in that regard is massive. If Alphabet (Google's Parent Company) were a country, it would be one of the largest economies in the world, ahead of most nations except the top 10.

2. Health is a Transversal Business

In August 2023, Google dismantles their health division in a strategy overhaul only 5 years after its creation. This news sparked a ton of gloating of healthcare stakeholders in my LinkedIn Feed.

"Tech companies are only in it for the money. They should stay out of it."

"Health is more complex than building a search feed. They are way too naive."

I remember very well spending almost an entire day replying to all these posts by framing this overhaul as the most brilliant move possible. By accommodating its health activities in all business units, Google could have a much bigger impact. I remember arguing with my former employer five years earlier about treating health as a transversal business. Health is something that matters to all customers, therefore it should not be treated as a vertical business unit. Like with the gloaters on LinkedIn, it was to no avail and let (in part) to us going our separate ways. My conviction, however, motivated me to write about this vision in my first book. Healthusiasm was born from this "Health is a Transversal Business" vision. Indeed, leaders at Google must have read the first Healthusiasm book (just let me have that naive belief will ya?). But more likely, Google understood that they were a life company. I love how Dr. Karen DeSalvo, Google’s Chief Health Officer explains it:

“Google is a life company…not a health company. To have a high quality of life, health is very important. We want to help people and help enterprises meet consumers where they are and give them what they need. One of the primary goals of the company is to help billions of people around the world become healthier in an equitable manner… giving every single person an opportunity to have the highest quality of health. Health is a company-wide effort at Google.”

3. Dare to Innovate

Google is not afraid of innovation. Gosh, you may perhaps say they are "too eager" to innovate because they have to kill so many of them. Some websites, called Google's Graveyard, cover these killed innovations (notice that I did not say 'failed' innovations, because many of them did not fail). My favourite, "Killed by Google," lists 296 innovative projects halted over the years. It also contains some very promising Health Innovations that came to an end. Here are 9 of my favourites:

• Google Health (2008–2012) – Personal health records platform.

• Google Flu Trends (2008–2015) – Flu prediction using search data.

• Google PowerMeter (2009–2011) – Home energy tracking tool.

• Google Contact Lens (2014–2018) – Smart lens for glucose monitoring.

• Google Fit (2014–2024) – Health-tracking platform.

• Verily's Disease-Detecting Nanoparticles (2014) – Nanotech for disease detection.

• Verily's Smart Shoes (2019) – Shoes tracking health metrics.

• Google Health Studies App (2020–2023) – Mobile health research app.

I think this dare-to-innovate mentality should be an inspiration for the healthcare industry. Too often healthcare sees the limitations before the opportunities; too often projects get killed before they are started. There is too much negativity upfront and then you don't learn anything. Did you know that the word Healthusiasm was actually chosen to spark more enthusiasm for innovation in healthcare? I wanted to amplify the positive things that are happening in health, regardless of how small or naive they are. What you pay attention to grows...

Conclusion

Google's Health Impact cannot be ignored or underestimated anymore. Whatta heck,... they are even awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2024 (well, actually the award should have been given - for the first time - to the machine called Alphafold) for accurately predicting nearly all 200 million known protein structures (and its 70 million defects). This achievement, which was expected to require at least 100 more years to reach, lays the foundations for new cures for any potential disease in the (near)future. Meanwhile, their MedGemini artificial intelligence already scores 91,1% on US Medical Exam questions.

Google is shaping a considerable part of the future of Health in this Healthusiasm World, proceeding in a way that many other companies could follow in their own right and domain.

1. Solve the most significant health issue you can solve with your expertise

2. Consider health as a transversal business that is embedded in every part of your business units

3. Dare to innovate, focus on the positive first and amplify the most minor achievements.

Already today, health consumers take up at least 25% of the value of any industry. When strategising for the future, most companies will realise that, in essence, every business will have to become a health business. So, I believe these three distinct approaches will be critical for every business.

What are you waiting for?

-Christophe-

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Update from Mid-March 2025 (only 2 weeks later)

Google Doubles Down on Health AI: From Smarter Search to Drug DiscoveryAs discussed in my earlier article on Google Health, the tech giant continues to blur the lines between healthcare and technology with bold new AI-driven innovations.

At its recent The Check Up event in New York, Google unveiled a comprehensive slate of healthcare updates spanning drug discovery, medical records integration, and enhanced health search experiences — all powered by AI.

💊 Revolutionizing Drug Discovery

The new TxGemma open models are designed to interpret both natural language and molecular structures. Through its Health AI Developer Foundations program, Google offers researchers tools to predict safety and efficacy of new therapies and generate hypotheses. An AI “co-scientist,” based on Gemini 2.0, supports biomedical innovation by parsing scientific literature and suggesting experimental directions — a major stride toward faster and more effective R&D.

🔎 Smarter, More Human Health Search

In Google Search, AI-enhanced Knowledge Panels now cover thousands more health topics and are rolling out in Spanish, Portuguese, and Japanese. A new feature, What People Suggest, aggregates online user experiences (e.g., managing arthritis with exercise), offering community-based insights to complement expert advice.

💿 Connecting Medical Records to Daily Health

With the global release of Medical Records APIs through Android’s Health Connect, Google allows apps to read and write over 50 types of standardized health data — from vitals and sleep to allergies and lab results — seamlessly connecting clinical records with personal wellness data.

⏱ Wearable-Driven Emergency Response

The Pixel Watch 3’s Loss of Pulse Detection feature — FDA-cleared and set for a U.S. release — adds another layer of life-saving potential, alerting emergency services when a user becomes unresponsive due to cardiac or respiratory issues.

Why It Matters

These announcements signal a strategic, user-centric evolution in Google’s healthcare ambitions. While earlier efforts were fragmented, the current approach — combining infrastructure, user insights, and open collaboration — points to a more integrated, impactful vision. As I noted previously, Google is not just organizing the world’s health information but actively reshaping how we discover, understand, and manage health.

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www.healthusiasm.com

𝗛𝗘𝗔𝗟𝗧𝗛𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗮𝘀𝗺 (°2018) is the label under which Christophe Jauquet explores and explains how health shapes the future of every industry.

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You learn about #healthusiasm in:

• Keynotes:  How health is shaping the future of  ____________

• Consultancy:  The Futures of Health - Advise on trends, technologies and ecosystems.

• Masterclass: Full-day engaging masterclasses to become more human/health-centric

• Podcast:  An expert panel discussing the latest health innovations and trends 

• Books:  Literature on the impact of the global Healthusiasm Trend

• Blog:  Weekly thoughts reflecting  on the latest evolutions in the world

• Insights:   Some of the most remarkable research on health behaviours

• Trends:  An exceptional look at the most relevant health & wellness trends

• Fashion:  Athleisure wear --- coming someday

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