7 Most Audacious Medtech Predictions

Sometimes, being audacious can be a good thing. After all, the word simply means showing a willingness to take surprisingly bold risks according to the Oxford dictionary.

Think of President John F. Kennedys famous words from 1961: I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth.

Medtech has its own idealists these days making moonshot predictions. Here are seven of the greatest hits:

1. People living until 150 Count English author and theoretician Aubrey de Grey among the futurists who see a potential for much longer lifespans than what humans now experience. De Grey claims the science is already out there to reverse molecular and cellular damage in people and stop aging. I predict that the first person to live to 150 is probably already in middle age, and that most people who are in their 20s now will probably live to be at least that old, de Grey told Newsweek last year.

According to a rumor, Apple is exploring giving its smart watches heart-attack detecting functionality.

2. The Google executive who thinks immortality Is possible Ray Kurzweil, who is currently Googles director of engineering, has made a name for himself by developing brilliant inventions and saying things that sound audacious. Technology is progressing exponentially, he argues, which will lead to what he terms the Singularity -- a point at which humans transcend biology. This will give humans the option of immortality, Kurzweil maintains. Last year, he told The New York Times that, by 2050, humans could build a virtual human body with nanobots. He continues: By the 2030s well be putting millions of nanobots inside our bodies to augment our immune system, to basically wipe out disease.

It makes sense that Kurzweil works for Google. The company shares an admiration for his vision. And in 2013, it acquired the firm Calico, which is aiming to solve death, according to many media reports -- including TIME. While that may be hyperbolic, the company is serious in its quest to extend humans life spans. As the Technology Review put it: Pretty obviously, Google isnt going to solve death. But whats interesting is that [the companys co-founder] Page, now 40, and Google have the hubris to think they might.

Calico recently announced plans to build a $1.5 billion research center in San Francisco

3. Replacing physicians with computer programs Legendary Silicon Valley investor Vinod Khosla made some waves a couple of years ago by predicting that algorithms could replace 80% of what doctors do. He hasnt softened since then. In May of this year, he proclaimed that data science will do more for medicine than all the biological sciences combined, according to Venture Beat.

4. Allowing the blind to see Not every claim has been as out of sight as immortality. Sylmar, Calif.-based Second Sight Medical Products has a more humble goal: enabling the blind to see. The FDA in early 2013 approved its Argus II Retinal Prothesis System for patients with late-stage retinitis pigmentosa, and the first US commercial implants took place early this year. A glasses-mounted camera collects visual information that is wirelessly transmitted to an implant that sends electrical signals through the retina to the brain. Patients can only discern patterns of light through the Argus II, but its a start.

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7 Most Audacious Medtech Predictions