Last week Apple and Google announced that they would be teaming up to create contact tracing features that will be integrated into iOS and Android, along with an API that developers can take advantage of. The good news for developers and also healthcare officials is that it looks like the API will be released next week.
Note that the system is expected to be released in two parts. The first part was originally supposed to arrive mid-May, but it seems that Apple and Google worked around the clock to bring it earlier. The release of this API means that developers will be able to start working on apps for contact tracing.
The second part of the release will be integrating the tech on an OS-level, meaning that it will be integrated into both iOS and Android which will allow users of those devices to participate in contact tracing efforts. This will make it useful even if users do not have any specific apps installed on their phones.
Contact tracing is extremely important in our fight against the coronavirus. This is because some people who are infected are asymptomatic, meaning that they do not know that they have the disease as they do not display any symptoms. This means that they can easily pass it onto others unknowingly, but with contact tracing, authorities can quickly track down the chain of infected people to help curb the spread.
Filed in . Read more about Coronavirus, Covid-19, Google and Health. Source: techcrunch