Novartis to Begin Human Testing of Smart Contact Lens for Diabetics in 2016

"Novartis plans the first human tests next year of a 'smart' contact lens it is developing with Google designed to help restore the eye's natural autofocus," reports Reuters. 'This project is progressing well,' Novartis Chief Executive Joe Jimenez told Swiss newspaper Le Temps in an interview. 'I had said it would take about five years to see a product on the market,' Jimenez told the paper. 'The calendar is on track and we are already developing a technological lens prototype (that) should be tested on humans in 2016.' A Novartis spokesman told Reuters that Jimenez was referring to a smart lens for accommodative vision correction in people with presbyopia, or age-related long sightedness, who can no longer read without glasses. Under an agreement signed with Google in 2014, Novartis is also developing smart contact lenses to help diabetics track their blood glucose levels." Read more.