ARTICLE SUMMARY:
Medtronic’s latest tuck-in acquisition in the diabetes space, smart insulin pen company Companion Medical, gets Medtronic in on the “ground floor” of a huge and largely untapped growth opportunity, according to Mike Hill, VP of Marketing Analytics and Operations for Medtronic diabetes. What’s more, it could help the company inch toward a more collaborative diabetes business model.
In mid-August, Medtronic plc announced that it had reached a deal to acquire privately held smart insulin pen company Companion Medical for an undisclosed amount, taking Medtronic’s diabetes business in a new direction. Companion’s InPen system—the first smart insulin pen to receive FDA clearance (in 2016)—combines a Bluetooth-enabled insulin pen that automatically tracks insulin doses with a mobile app that monitors trends, keeps track of missed doses, sends dosing reminders, and calculates appropriate doses based on meal estimations.
