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ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Apple’s developer convention kicks off Monday.
- Apple is lagging behind within the AI race.
- Its partnership with Google may supercharge its well being suite.
I’ve been sporting Google’s screenless Fitbit Air for a couple of weeks now, and whereas comparisons to its luxurious counterpart, the Whoop, abound, testing Google’s well being tracker put my thoughts on its greatest rival, Apple, as an alternative.
Whereas I might be blissful to see Apple ship a screenless well being tracker of its personal, what I might a lot fairly see is a considerable improve to its personal well being suite — and that begins with software program.
Apple’s Worldwide Builders Convention kicks off Monday, and the software program unveiled there’ll ship on Apple’s next-gen merchandise. It may not seem to be it, however WWDC may mark a turning level for the tech big, with its rumored Siri revamp on the middle of all of it. This is why.
Gemini will energy the following Siri
Google’s Gemini will energy the following era of Siri, the 2 corporations introduced earlier this 12 months. Corporations use one another’s software program on a regular basis — however Apple isn’t any common firm. Steve Jobs notoriously saved Apple’s {hardware} and software program closed, with little curiosity in integrating his merchandise into Android gadgets or bringing Google merchandise into Apple’s ecosystem.
Alas, it is 2026, AI has flooded Android’s {hardware}, and Apple has run shallow by itself. It was about time Apple made a deal.
As ZDNET’s well being editor, I’m most intrigued by the well being and fitness-related prospects to return out of Google’s Siri revamp.
Whereas not excellent, my expertise testing Google’s AI Well being Coach has bought me on well being AI as a great tool. By merely having a chatbot that hooks as much as my sleep, train, and stress information, I can ask health-related questions that take my particular situations under consideration and get customized solutions and suggestions.
What’s extra, I am wanting to see how Apple will embody this software program in its gadgets to create one thing that feels distinct from its competitors.
I might love a brand new Well being app (and chatbot)
I might like to see a Well being app revamp, much like what Google has carried out with its Fitbit, now Google Well being, app. It is excessive time Apple takes the information it is already amassing from the Apple Watch and makes use of it to energy new day by day metrics, join info throughout apps, or present new insights.
A well being chatbot might be really easy to implement into the Well being app, however Apple would want to configure Google’s Gemini to be as non-public, safe, and encrypted as its personal merchandise are. This is without doubt one of the many explanation why folks flock to Apple over Android gadgets, and it is a massive problem with this collaboration: Will Apple relinquish a few of its personal privateness measures to get a working AI on its merchandise? I hope Apple will point out this when it reveals this alleged health-related AI assistant.
The well being assistant may work together between apps just like the Well being app, Journal, and the Apple Watch Health app to log info with no person having to manually enter this throughout apps. So to illustrate a person logs a temper within the Journal app: The Well being AI may join that temper to physiological info throughout the person’s Well being, Sleep, or Exercise apps.
Constructing on the Sleep Rating Apple unveiled in September, I might additionally love Apple to combine extra information from the smartwatch into day by day summaries you may examine. Whereas testing the Fitbit Air and Google Well being Premium, I loved getting somewhat abstract of my day by day exercise, bedtime suggestions, and nudges to maneuver extra.
Apple’s place inside the well being ecosystem emphasizes privateness and science-backed options. I might like to see its research-backed strategy to a readiness rating, stress monitoring, or a extra sturdy wellness advice engine.
Interactive and digestible information
Apple has seemingly constructed its Well being app with interactivity as an afterthought. This is smart. It is not a recreation or a streaming app; it is not an app persons are purported to spend greater than 5 minutes sifting by. However the Oura and Google Well being apps have confirmed that individuals certainly get extra out of their well being machine when information is illustrated in an interactive and digestible approach.
Oura does this greatest, with tabs for day by day sleep, exercise, and stress scores; a short-term, combination tab of essential biometrics; and the longitudinal well being tab, which shows info like stress administration, sleep well being, and coronary heart well being.
If Apple nails its well being coach and Well being app redesign, it will place the corporate nicely for no matter future wearable it is cooking up.
