Health IT

Amazon’s 1492 lab is reportedly exploring EHRs and telemedicine (Updated)

While its CEO briefly held the title of richest person in the world on July 27, Amazon had set its sights elsewhere. The e-commerce company has reportedly created 1492, a secret lab focused on healthcare technology advancements.

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This post was updated to include a comment from an Amazon spokesperson.

A new player appears to be edging its way into the health tech space.

Amazon, the e-commerce company known for selling everything from books to apparel, has created a secret lab (called 1492) focused on healthcare technology, according to an article from CNBC.

The report comes at the same time the Seattle company’s CEO, Jeff Bezos, briefly surpassed Bill Gates as the richest person in the world, until Amazon’s stock reversed direction and he fell to the second place spot, according to The Seattle Times.

The 1492 team is reportedly examining ways of making EHRs more accessible to physicians and patients. It’s also looking to build a telemedicine platform.

The lab is potentially creating health applications for Amazon devices like Echo and Dash Wand as well. CNBC did not know whether the company is developing any of its own health devices.

As of July 26, Amazon was advertising open 1492 positions on its website under the keyword “a1.492,” according to CNBC. But on July 27, the positions were no longer online.

Via email, an Amazon spokesperson said the company declined to comment on rumor and speculation.

This isn’t the company’s first foray into healthcare.

Earlier this summer, reports that it plans to break into the pharmacy sector were met with a variety of perspectives from industry experts. Together with numerous drugmakers, the tech giant invested in Grail, Illumina’s diagnostics startup, at the beginning of the year. And Amazon Web Services, its cloud unit, is attempting to land contracts with pharma vendors and hospitals.

With 1492, Amazon seems to be reinforcing its desire to be at the intersection of technology and healthcare. Only time will tell what this next step means for the company’s future.

Photo: EzumeImages, Getty Images

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