Apple brings in ex-Googler and robotics expert Yoky Matsuoka to work on Healthkit

Apple has tapped Nest’s former tech chief Yoky Matsuoka to head up health projects at the company, according to Fortune.

The MacArthur genius award winner comes with an impressive resume as a former professor of robotics and co-founder of the Google X lab. Matsuoka joined Nest as head of technology in 2010.

Matsuoka was slated to become Twitter’s tech VP last year but soon stepped away from the position, citing a life-threatening illness.

The treatments seemed to have worked and Matsuoka was able to start thinking about the future, according to a Medium post she wrote last May.

Her personal experience with illness no doubt made the Apple offer very attractive. Matsuoka will reportedly be working on Healthkit and Researchkit and will report to chief operating officer Jeff Williams, who led the development of Apple Watch and manages many of Apple’s health initiatives.