Google hires Apple chair to head new health firm Calico

Google says it has launched a new health company, called Calico, that will focus on aging and related diseases.

The internet search giant said Wednesday that the company will be headed by Arthur Levinson, the current chairman and former CEO of biotechnology company Genentech and the chairman of Apple Inc. He will stay in his current positions.

Google Inc. CEO Larry Page says on his Google Plus page that shareholders shouldn't be surprised if Google invests in projects that seem "strange or speculative" compared with its internet businesses. He says Google sees potential for technology "more generally to improve people's lives."

Google is not giving much detail on Calico. The company says the venture is still in its early days.