Samsung, Apple & Google: A Triple Threat or Validation that Digital Health Needs?

By Jeff Arnold, CEO and Chairman

Over the last several weeks, there has been a lot of buzz about major tech companies – Samsung and Apple, in particular – joining the health and wellness space. And now, according to Forbes, Google also is throwing its very big hat in the ring. As the CEO of a digital health company, I’ve been asked by a lot of people what I think about these announcements – and I’m a little surprised that many of these questions presume these power players joining the space might be bad for a company like Sharecare when, in fact, it’s quite the opposite.

For Sharecare specifically, Samsung, Apple or Google joining the mHealth movement is not competitive to our efforts; rather it’s complementary to our mission and will only enable us to empower even more consumers to live healthier lives no matter where they are or what device they’re carrying. So, bottom line, this is really good news for all of us – and when I say “all,” I mean the digital health industry, healthcare in general and, most importantly, consumers. We couldn’t be more excited about what’s possible now that these major consumer tech companies are part of the health ecosystem, and Sharecare applauds them for putting a stake in the ground proclaiming that health – and mHealth in particular – is critical for their customers.