We just learned that Google Life Sciences was renamed Verily. Today it was announced that Verily and Johnson & Johnson’s medical devices company Ethicon have teamed up for a new joint venture that has been named Verb Surgical. The branding team coming up with these names either has an affinity for grammar or the letter “V,” it seems.
Verb Surgical will be an entity focused on robotic surgery and medical devices. It was announced earlier this year that the partnership for this venture was in the works. Scott Huennekens, an experienced business leader with over 20 years in the medical device industry, has been appointed as Verb Surgical’s President and CEO, according to a release.
“We believe Verb Surgical has the potential to change the future of surgery, not just robotic surgery,”Gary Pruden, Worldwide Chairman, Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices, said in a statement. “The team has already made meaningful progress on the robotics platform, which is being developed for application across a host of surgical specialties.”
Verb Surgical is reportedly planning to develop new technologies with direct input from surgeons and hospitals in hopes of improving access to minimally invasive surgeries, improve patient outcomes and have more efficient hospitals.
Both Verily and Ethicon have intellectual property, in-process R&D assets and other resources to Verb Surgical. The board of directors will be made up of members from Ethicon, Johnson & Johnson Innovation, LLC, Verily and Google.
“I’m very excited about the possibilities that we can realize through our new surgical solutions company,” said Scott Huennekens, President and CEO, Verb Surgical. “By maximizing the distinct capabilities of these two market-leading companies, we aim to develop novel technologies and solutions to help improve the standard of care around the world. Our name speaks for itself. We are a company dedicated to action and to making a difference in people’s lives, in partnership with surgeons globally.”
Photo: Facebook user Tamala Edwards
