Google announced the creation of a new company called Calico today. According to Google, it will focus on health and well-being with an eye specifically on aging and diseases associated with it. Simply put, they want to figure out how to extend life.

Calico will be led by Chairman and former CEO of Genentech and Apple Chairman Arthur Levinson, who will remain Chairman of Genentech and a director of Hoffmann-La Roche, as well as Chairman of Apple.

Google CEO Larry Page said, “Illness and aging affect all our families. With some longer term, moonshot thinking around healthcare and biotechnology, I believe we can improve millions of lives. It’s impossible to imagine anyone better than Art—one of the leading scientists, entrepreneurs and CEOs of our generation—to take this new venture forward.”

Levinson said, “I’ve devoted much of my life to science and technology, with the goal of improving human health. Larry’s focus on outsized improvements has inspired me, and I’m tremendously excited about what’s next.”

Page discussed the initiative further in a Google+ post:

Apple CEO Tim Cook also offered a comment for Google’s announcement, “For too many of our friends and family, life has been cut short or the quality of their life is too often lacking. Art is one of the crazy ones who thinks it doesn’t have to be this way. There is no one better suited to lead this mission and I am excited to see the results.”

I’d say the world will be pretty excited to see them too.

Google has had some pretty ambitious ideas in recent years, but investing in prolonging life has to trump even self-driving cars.

Now, let the Google vs. evil conversation continue…

See Also: Arthur Levinson Talks About Calico, Google’s New Death-Fighting Company

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