Alphabet's life sciences unit, which was previously a part of the tech company's Google X research and development unit, has been renamed to 'Verily.' The name change follows Google's transition to the parent name Alphabet, which in October became the publicly traded company that houses Google's core search and web advertising business, as well as maps, YouTube and its "moon shot" ventures such as driverless cars.

According to Verily's new website (www.verily.com), the company's mission is "to bring together technology and life sciences to uncover new truths about health and disease."

Verily already has several projects in the works, including the development of a smart contact lens in partnership with the Swiss drugmaker Novartis that has an embedded glucose sensor.