Apple hires Flipboard co-founder Evan Doll to direct work on health software

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Apple has hired on one of the co-founders of Flipboard, Evan Doll, as a director of health software engineering, a report observed on Thursday.




Doll quietly started his new role with Apple last month, according to a LinkedIn profile update discovered by Bloomberg. Little is known about his new position, but Doll previously worked as a software engineer with Apple between 2003 and 2009, helping to develop iOS.

Apple has increasingly turned its attention -- and hiring -- towards health- and fitness-related products, launching not the just the Apple Watch but HealthKit, ResearchKit, and CareKit. In a recent interview, CEO Tim Cook once again suggested that this is just the beginning.

"We've gotten into the health arena and we started looking at wellness, that took us to pulling a string to thinking about research, pulling that string a little further took us to some patient-care stuff, and that pulled a string that's taking us into some other stuff," he said.

It's not clear how Doll might fit into that picture beyond his general experience in iOS development, but Flipboard is a magazine-style news aggregator that launched in 2010, and was famously one of the first major iPad-only apps, though it would later come to other platforms like the iPhone. In recent months the app's thunder has been undermined by Apple News, which copies many of the same concepts but comes built into iOS 9.

Doll actually left Flipboard in September last year, along with several other executives. In the meantime he's held a position with Redpoint Ventures.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 11
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    So Bloomberg is really just some kind of creepy Apple stalker.
    edited August 2016 nolamacguycaliJanNLlatifbp
  • Reply 2 of 11
    robin huberrobin huber Posts: 3,958member
    That's nice. But shouldn't a medical research scientist be in charge?
  • Reply 3 of 11
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,808member
    That's nice. But shouldn't a medical research scientist be in charge?
    No, a research scientist may not know anything about how to make an app work. They may know the science part of it, but they are in no way a leader for an app. 
    nolamacguylolliver
  • Reply 4 of 11
    TomETomE Posts: 172member
    No, a medical research scientist should not be in charge.  Apple Health is the next big product. It is behind in the released version, but can come up to speed fast - next good iteration can do it.  Needs to be able to manage data better under their own software and not have to rely on other little apps.  Need to be able to print out data & charts for the MD and to be able to transfer data to the MD.  It is my data and I use it almost every day.  Have been able to call MD's hands with this data vs their single point analysis.

    Apple Health is the next big thing.  If they cannot do it, most users can help them.  I know I can. Go Evan Doll.  We need practical, complete solutions, not partial ones.  Need a little flexibility.  TomE
    fastasleep
  • Reply 5 of 11
    TomETomE Posts: 172member
    The FDA & stupid government regulations are a big hold up.  Since when has the Government been able to do enforcement of any laws.  They just pass new ones that inhibit progress.  Now they have some good guidelines, but they are the government & they are here to help us.  

    I only want my approximate parameters.  The Watch or whatever it is should alert me to a possible situation that I need to get checked.  I don't care if I walk 10,000 steps per day or 10,050 steps per day.  I want my Fitbit or what ever to be able to transmit automatically into the Apple Health data without a intermediary application.  I don't always carry my Boat Sized iPhone in the yard when I move around.  I wear my health device, Fitbit, Garmin, Zip, or Apple Watch.  If you are young and have no apparent health concerns, this may not be your interest.  But if your are older, it can be a life saving software.  Has not got to be able to do everything, just what is does needs to be accessible by users, & MD's.  Bear in Mind the Medical Community is decades behind.  They just don't want to admit it. How many times to you have to fill out the same paperwork for MD's.  Similar info in a different order.  Same data on Page 4 as on Page 1. If you are in the medical community and don't agree, I feel sorry for you. They just buy software that meets the government guidelines so they can continue to practice.

    They are usually a member of a regional or area database, but if your MD's span geographic boundaries , Good Luck.  Like pushing on a Rope.  Sorry.
    Not everyone can go to a Cleveland Clinic, Mayo, or UAB.  We have the Bottom 95+% to pick from; what was your MD's grade point average in Medical School. When he passed the license test, he got to practice even if he was in the bottom 5%.
    topper24hours
  • Reply 6 of 11
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    The new Evan Doll is better than Ken.
    JanNLzeus423robin huberfastasleep
  • Reply 7 of 11
    latifbplatifbp Posts: 544member
    sog35 said:
    Flipboard kinda sucks.

    I heard people here bragging about how much better it is than Apple News.

    One irratating thing is you really never know which way you are suppose to swipe the screen. Up? Down? Left? right? Ridiculous
    Flipboard was horrible. I was so happy to delete it and discontinue using it
  • Reply 8 of 11
    calicali Posts: 3,494member
    What a doll! <3 <3

    why wasn't he put in charge of News? Everyone raved at how much better Flipboard was than Apples offering.
    edited August 2016
  • Reply 9 of 11
    robin huberrobin huber Posts: 3,958member
    macxpress said:
    That's nice. But shouldn't a medical research scientist be in charge?
    No, a research scientist may not know anything about how to make an app work. They may know the science part of it, but they are in no way a leader for an app. 
    Um, aren't you assuming all medical research scientists are technically illiterate? In this highly technical, hardware oriented field, I'll bet some have double majors in computer technology, and may have even authored apps. I could turn your position around and ask why a guy who knows nothing about medicine should lead a group focusing on it. Just saying that they might have gotten someone with skills and experience on both end of the task.  
  • Reply 10 of 11
    I've used 5 separate EMR's and they're ALL shockingly terrible. (The one I use most often currently is Allscripts, and it looks and functions like it was designed in the 90's, which it probably was; I hear Epic has improved though.) This makes things much less efficient and streamlined than they should be. Petty bureaucracy and general medical administration incompetence is the reason we're in this situation. (I'm sure we can also thank microsoft and their IT culture of mediocrity and complacency.) Everyone thinks they can make or collaborate on their own EMR, which makes absolutely no sense. Everyone tries to reinvent the wheel because they think they need a different set of treads. So the designs are terrible, unintuitive, and it takes months to train everyone involved when there is a transition in EMRs, or even a software update, at least.

    Please, for the love of god, Apple can you make an EMR that works AND that will actually be adopted by the geniuses in medical administration? That would make everyone's life so much easier, and probably save a few as well.
    edited August 2016
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