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Alphabet’s health-tech company, Verily, is getting $800 million from a Singapore investment firm

The investment should take some weight off Alphabet to fund R&D for the medical business.

Verily via YouTube

Verily, a subsidiary of Google parent company Alphabet, accepted an $800 million investment from Singaporean investment firm Temasek in exchange for a minority stake, according to the companies.

Verily focuses on health care technology and is profitable, as Recode previously reported. According to our reporting and analysis, the startup is likely generating about $10 million in sales, largely from licensing its technology.

Still, the large cash infusion should take some weight off Alphabet’s shoulders in funding Verily’s research and development costs. The investment also reflects an ongoing shift in Alphabet’s culture, which has traditionally favored developing technology almost entirely in-house, sometimes buying and hiring tech talent outright.

Verily is working on technology aimed at improving health. Some of its efforts include smart contact lenses with features like glucose detection and eating utensils tailored to the needs of people with tremors and mobility issues.

Temasek’s investments are mostly concentrated in Asia, with Singapore and China the top represented countries in its $180 billion portfolio.

Here’s a company video of Verily’s pitch:

Clarification: We updated this article to show revenue estimates for Verily are based on analysis and reporting from an earlier post.


This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

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