Royal Philips, a global leader in health technology, today announced a multi-year partnership with Merck, a leading science and technology company, to develop clinical-grade digital solutions for highly personalized fertility treatment. Leveraging digital health technologies, advanced informatics, and mobile, AI-enabled ultrasound diagnostics, these solutions will aim to better inform patients and clinicians about the choice and timing of fertility treatment to maximize the chances of conception.

“At Philips, we are leading digital transformation in healthcare, with a portfolio that includes solutions for both professionals and consumers to support parents-to-be through pregnancy and the first years of their baby’s life,” said Jeroen Tas, Chief Innovation & Strategy Officer, Royal Philips. “The journey for aspiring parents is sometimes a difficult one, and by collaborating with Merck, a world leader in fertility treatment, we aim to develop integrated digital solutions that improve the patient experience and can ultimately have a positive impact on health outcomes. This partnership builds on our expertise in maternal and fetal monitoring, our Pregnancy+ and Baby+ consumer engagement apps, our leading ultrasound solutions, and our HealthSuite Cloud/AI platform.”

“We believe that the future of IVF will be unlocked through digital health technologies that empower professionals and patients to be better connected,” said Michelangelo Canzoneri, Global Head of Digital and Data, Healthcare at Merck. “With Philips, we have a partner that shares our belief in the potential of digital health to improve the patient experience, bringing a wealth of experience in the connected care to our offering. Together, this collaboration will push our two companies to think beyond tomorrow and discover new solutions that can empower people to realize their dreams of parenthood,” added Jan Kirsten, Head of Global Business Franchise for Fertility at Merck.

Digital health and virtual care technologies have proved invaluable during the COVID-19 pandemic in keeping patients and their care teams in virtual contact, accelerating digital transformation in healthcare. Digital technologies including remote patient monitoring, cloud-based services, and AI are playing an ever more important part in achieving better patient outcomes, better patient and staff experiences, and low cost of care – the quadruple aim of healthcare.

About Royal Philips

Royal Philips is a leading health technology company focused on improving people's health and enabling better outcomes across the health continuum from healthy living and prevention, to diagnosis, treatment, and home care. Philips leverages advanced technology and deep clinical and consumer insights to deliver integrated solutions. Headquartered in the Netherlands, the company is a leader in diagnostic imaging, image-guided therapy, patient monitoring, and health informatics, as well as in consumer health and home care. Philips generated 2019 sales of EUR 19.5 billion and employs approximately 81,000 employees with sales and services in more than 100 countries. 

About Merck

Merck KGaA, a leading science, and technology company, operates across healthcare, life science, and performance materials. Around 57,000 employees work to make a positive difference in millions of people’s lives every day by creating more joyful and sustainable ways to live. From advancing gene-editing technologies and discovering unique ways to treat the most challenging diseases to enabling the intelligence of devices – the company is everywhere. In 2019, Merck generated sales of €16.2 billion in 66 countries.

Scientific exploration and responsible entrepreneurship have been key to Merck’s technological and scientific advances. This is how Merck has thrived since its founding in 1668. The founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed company. Merck holds the global rights to the Merck name and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the business sectors of Merck operate as EMD Serono in healthcare, MilliporeSigma in life science, and EMD Performance Materials.