Johnson & Johnson, Verily form Verb Surgical to Develop Surgical Robots

In an attempt to give surgeons superhuman precision, Google’s Verily has partnered with Johnson & Johnson. Under the new startup, called Verb Surgical, two companies will develop medical robotics to assist surgeons.

The new company is a result of a partnership between pre-Alphabet Google and pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson that was announced earlier this year. The collaboration brings experts from Google and Ethicon of Johnson & Johnson on a single platform to assist surgeons.

The experts from both the companies will work to combine Verb Surgical's robots and Ethicon’s medical tools in one system that may assist doctors in performing minimally invasive operations. The new robots will improve surgeons’ control while performing surgeries.

In a statement on Verb Surgical website, the company said its objective is to make robots better assistance during surgeries. Johnson & Johnson said in a press release that Verb Surgical is a key player on a robotics platform, and now, it will be supported by Ethicon’s new surgical instruments.

Verily, Ethicon and Johnson & Johnson are investing in Verb Surgical. The new start-up will be based on Google's home turf of Mountain View, California. Scott Heinekens, Verb Surgical CEO and president, will handle all the operations in the new robotics company.

Verily's CEO Android Conrad said, “It expects to be working with pharma, biotech, medical-device and diagnostic companies for the foreseeable future”. The new company will also include executives from Google as board of directors. Adding to that, Verb Surgical will also have members from Johnson & Johnson Innovation, Ethicon and Verily.