SINGAPORE, Aug. 19, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Plano Pte Ltd (hereinafter, Plano), a Singapore-based health technology startup, and one of the world's leading providers of interactive entertainment, YOOZOO, have inked a Memorandum of Understanding to address the global burden of myopia in Singapore, the region and beyond.
Myopia (short-sightedness) is one of the biggest public health challenges of our time and is one of the most common health problems in the world, affecting an estimated 2 billion people today and projected to increase to 5 billion (half of the world's population) by 2050.[1] In Singapore, which is often labelled as the myopia capital of the world, almost 80% of young adults have myopia upon completing college education.[2]
Whilst YOOZOO is best known for its work in global development and publishing, in recent years they have built upon their expertise in games to develop an AI Innovation Lab, focusing on healthcare, wellness and education.
Plano is a health technology company that specializes in myopia management through education, awareness and science-based technological interventions, which include the planoApp and planoEyecheck, an online optometry booking platform. In less than 3 years since its inception, Plano is considered as one of the world leaders in raising awareness and educating the public on myopia, its risk factors and management strategies.
Through this partnership, YOOZOO and Plano aim to address and combat the myopia epidemic by sharing both company's technical and professional expertise with the common vision of improving the quality of life and providing a myopia-safe environment for families worldwide.
"It is truly encouraging to see YOOZOO, a world-renowned gaming company, taking notice and action to address the global problem of myopia in children and teenagers. I strongly believe that this partnership will set an example and create a strong foundation upon which future novel interventions for myopia will be developed," said Plano's Founding Managing Director Associate Professor Mohamed Dirani.
"We firmly believe in the power of AI to improve the quality of lives and this partnership with Plano will allow us to do so by tackling an emerging medical problem. We are very excited about what we can achieve with this partnership," added Chi-Keong Goh, YOOZOO's AI Technical Director, with more than 15 years experience in developing and leading data-driven innovation.
About Plano
Plano was developed with a clear purpose; to save sight and empower lives. With a culture of disruptive thinking grounded in real scientific research, Plano promotes the use of innovative technology to provide a solution to help mitigate the public health, societal and economic issues posed by excessive device usage. Plano's founding Managing Director, Associate Professor Mohamed Dirani, has dedicated his life to the study and research of myopia, and is an Adjunct Associate Professor at Duke-NUS Medical School and an Honorary Principal Investigator at the Singapore Eye Research Institute (SERI) and the Centre for Eye Research Australia (CERA). In July 2020, Plano announced its strategic alliance with global ophthalmic leader, Santen.
About YOOZOO Games
YOOZOO Games is a global entertainment company specializing in game development and distribution. The company is headquartered in Shanghai with offices across Asia, Europe, and the US. Since its founding in 2009, YOOZOO has forged a strong global distribution network and launched over 40 highly successful titles including Game of Thrones Winter is Coming, the League of Angels series and Saint Seiya Awakening: Knights of the Zodiac.
References:
[1]. Holden BA, Fricke TR, Wilson DA, et al. Global Prevalence of Myopia and High Myopia and Temporal Trends from 2000 through 2050. Ophthalmology 2016;123(5):1036-42.
[2]. Seet B, Tien Yin W, Tan DTH, et al. Myopia in Singapore: Taking a public health approach. British Journal of Ophthalmology 2001;85(5):521-6.
