Google's expands Health Connect app to Japan, partners with AI symptom checker Ubie

Fitness apps are some of the most popular: in 2021, these apps had an estimated 385 million unique users. Yet, the data that is collected can often sit sioled and mostly useless since it's not connected to anything. That's why last year Google announced the beta version of its Health Connect app, an Android platform that allows for data sharing between health and fitness apps. Launched with initial partners such as MyFitnessPal, Oura, and Peloton, the idea that sharing this data can to "help you get a holistic view of your health and fitness and understand how your lifestyle behaviors impact it."

Health Connect (Beta) currently connects over 40 apps worldwide, and now the company is expanding the app to Japan, announcing this week that has selected six launch partners in the country.

One of those is Ubie, a Tokyo-based developer of an AI-based symptom tracking platform that help guide the patient to the correct treatment option, as well as an AI-powered patient intake product that allows physicians to know what the problem is they're treating before they ever see the patient. 

The company's symptom checker asks patients around 20 questions about their symptoms to discover related diseases and provide more detailed actionable health information. Patients can detail their symptoms, such as headache, cough, or throat swelling, as well as their disease, such as migraine, or gastritis. They can also simply state which part of their body hurts, or what specialty they need. The questionnaire takes a total of three minutes, after which Ubie's AI-powered system will generate a free report on possible causes, as well as when to see a doctor, what is causing those symptoms, treatment information, and a guide on how to access appropriate medical care. 

The service is used by over 7 million monthly users worldwide, including in Japan and the U.S.

By linking Health Connect (Beta) and their Ubie AI Symptom Checker, users can gain access to health-related data from other apps that can improve the accuracy of their symptom-related questionnaires. 

For example, a diabetic patient who regularly measures their blood sugar levels might search for symptoms on Ubie AI Symptom Checker; Health Connect (Beta) can take blood sugar level data obtained from other apps and apply it for a more accurate diagnosis. If it finds that the patient might be at high risk. the AI will guide users to the appropriate medical facility to take appropriate medical actions. The blood sugar level data linkage started on April 20 and the data transmission function to medical institutions is scheduled to be provided in the second half of this year.  

Going forward, the two companies have more plans for integration, including Ubie potentially taking vital data from other apps and sending it, along with the symptom search results, to a connected medical facility, giving them more information on their patients. 

In addition to its symptom checker, Ubie's other product is its AI-powered patient intake, a service that streamlines the medical interview process for medical institutions. Before their appointment, patients can fill out an intake form at home via smartphone and share the information with their healthcare provider. That form is then automatically converted to SOAP format and sent to the doctor's dashboard,  which they can copy and paste into any EMR. The service is being used more than 1,000 medical institutions worldwide.