One pump, a choice of closed loop 'brains'
Sequel plans to offer Diabeloop’s DBLG2 algorithm on the twiist pump, giving users a choice of automation algorithms.
If you use an insulin pump that runs a closed loop, the part doing the clever work is not really the pump: it is the algorithm, the software that reads your sensor and decides how much insulin to trickle out. A US pump called twiist has announced plans to let people choose between more than one of these algorithms on the same pump, adding one made by a company called Diabeloop alongside the one it already uses. It is early, it is not sold in the UK, and nothing about your own setup changes. It is worth knowing because it shows how much the algorithm, not just the pump, shapes the ride.
- A closed loop (sometimes called an artificial pancreas) is a pump and glucose sensor that talk to each other and adjust your background insulin, the steady insulin you need day and night, on their own.
- The algorithm is the decision-making software inside it, the brain that works out how much insulin to give minute to minute.
- twiist is a US pump that is not available in the UK, and this is a plan that has been announced, not something you can use today.
- Two pumps with the same hardware can feel quite different to live with if they run different algorithms.
- Nothing here asks you to change anything: what your own system does is set up with your diabetes team.
A pump that lets you pick the brain
Sequel, the company behind the twiist pump, said it plans to add an algorithm made by Diabeloop, called DBLG2, as an option on the pump. twiist already works with another automation system, so the idea is that a user, together with their clinic, could choose which algorithm runs their loop rather than being tied to a single one. This is a partnership announcement, not a finished product you can order, and it applies to the United States, where twiist is sold. It is not available in the UK.
The algorithm shapes how a loop behaves
It is easy to picture a closed loop as one single thing, but the pump is mostly a delivery machine. The algorithm is what decides how boldly or gently to react when your glucose rises, how it handles the busy hours after a meal, and how hard it works overnight. Different algorithms make different choices, which is why two people on similar kit can describe genuinely different experiences, one finding it smooth, another finding it needs more hands-on tweaking.
Being able to swap the brain without swapping the pump is a different way of thinking about these systems. For now it is a US development at an early stage, so the honest UK takeaway is a small one: it is a sign of where the technology is heading, not something to wait for or ask to switch to. The systems available on the NHS are still chosen with your team, based on what your local service offers and what suits you.