PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Tidepool, a 501(c)3 nonprofit committed to providing free software for the diabetes community, today announced a milestone for the Tidepool Big Data Donation Project, having delivered complete, longitudinal datasets from 300 unique individuals with type 1 diabetes (T1D) to eight JDRF-awarded research teams under signed license agreements.

The Tidepool Big Data Donation Project is an opt-in program designed to help students, academia, and industry innovate faster and expand the boundaries of knowledge about diabetes. Users of Tidepool’s software tools may choose to donate their data. Tidepool then anonymizes it, stripping it of all identifying information, including name, email address, custom labeled profiles, and device identifiers, before including it in the pool of datasets that are made available to data partners and researchers. To date, over 10,000 donors have contributed to Tidepool’s Big Data Donation Project.

The license agreement between the two charities allows for eight research teams spanning 12 institutions selected for grant awards from JDRF, the leading global organization funding type 1 diabetes research, access to valid, real-world patient data. The research teams, who possess cutting-edge skills and experience in both T1D and advanced, state-of-the-art machine learning techniques, may use this anonymized data in simulations to build models in the development of new strategies for diabetes management, or in general to uncover novel real-world insights into how to better treat people with diabetes -- with a specific focus around next-generation automated insulin delivery techniques.

“When we launched Tidepool’s Big Data Donation Project, our vision was to allow people to say ‘yes, I want my data to be used to help expand the boundaries of diabetes research,’” said Howard Look, CEO and co-founder of Tidepool. “Now, thousands of people have done that, and industry and academic researchers are able to take advantage of the incredible knowledge and experience of the diabetes community.”

“Patient-generated health data holds enormous potential for scientists who are pursuing cures for type 1 diabetes,” said Aaron J. Kowalski, Ph.D., President and CEO of JDRF. “Thanks to the Tidepool Big Data Donation Project, researchers supported by JDRF will have new, powerful information at their fingertips. The T1D community is a tight-knit group that’s passionate about treatment innovations and finding cures for the disease, and we are all grateful to those T1D Champions who participated in this project.”

Previously, JDRF and The Helmsley Charitable Trust announced a $6 million grant supporting the development of Tidepool Loop, an interoperable automated glycemic controller (for automated insulin dosing) intended for people with diabetes who use iPhone and Apple Watch, continuing a partnership with Tidepool focused on providing innovative solutions for people with diabetes and their care teams.

About Tidepool

Tidepool is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization on a mission to make diabetes data more accessible, actionable, and meaningful for people with diabetes, their care teams, and researchers. Founded in 2013, Tidepool hosts a suite of free software tools for people with diabetes and the clinics that serve them, including Tidepool Web, Tidepool Mobile, Tidepool Uploader, and, pending submission to FDA and associated review, Tidepool Loop. Learn more at tidepool.org. Follow us on Twitter at @Tidepool_org and on Facebook and Instagram.

About JDRF

JDRF is the leading global organization funding type 1 diabetes (T1D) research. Our mission is to accelerate life-changing breakthroughs to cure, prevent and treat T1D and its complications. To accomplish this, JDRF has invested more than $2.2 billion in research funding since our inception. We are an organization built on a grassroots model of people connecting in their local communities, collaborating regionally for efficiency and broader fundraising impact, and uniting on a national stage to pool resources, passion, and energy. We collaborate with academic institutions, policymakers, and corporate and industry partners to develop and deliver a pipeline of innovative therapies to people living with T1D. Our staff and volunteers throughout the United States and our six international affiliates are dedicated to advocacy, community engagement and our vision of a world without T1D. For more information, please visit jdrf.org or follow us on Twitter: @JDRF.

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