Apple is reportedly developing a new ResearchKit-relient iPhone app that will allow users to conduct DNA testing.
After launching ResearchKit – a platform geared for medical research, Apple is seemingly preparing to expand on what the platform can actually do. The company is purportedly working with academics on ResearchKit apps that will let iPhone users get DNA tests, sources say to Engadget.
This does not mean that Apple will directly obtain your DNA; rather, the apps will make collecting genes and sharing them with scholars easier for users. Findings can easily be seen within the app as well, so users will know whether a certain condition is genetics based. Scientists will then store the data in a cloud database. Apple intends to let people share DNA data with other parties, including organizers of separate research efforts, reports AppleInsider.
Apple is still not commenting on these claims, but its DNA apps may be available sooner than expected. The company is reportedly reviewing app-based studies from New York's Mount Sinai Hospital and UC San Francisco. The labs will focus on disease-connected genes instead of sequencing entire genomes, which should minimize test costs.
Apple intends for the apps to be ready in time for the Worldwide Developer Conference in June. However, another source said the app-based DNA studies inititative could be stopped any time.