Samsung's Strategic Effort to Counter the Apple Watch: Emphasizing Health Monitoring Across Aging Stages
The Future of Healthcare at Home: Samsung's Digital Health push
Is your fridge on the verge of becoming your new healthcare buddy? It sure seems like it. In 2025, the cost of healthcare is set to escalate and older adults are increasingly opting for ageing in place. On the innovation radar, Samsung is making strides to secure a chunk of the digital health market, with its upcoming smartwatch update leading the charge.
"With an ageing population battling chronic diseases and escalating healthcare costs, home care is the new norm," said Hon Pak, Vice President and Head of Digital Health for Samsung's mobile business, during a CNN interview. "And Samsung just happens to be right there."
Samsung is eyeing digital health as a key battleground to close the gap with Apple in wearable technology. Both companies are going the extra mile with their wellness offerings, looking to create long-term customer loyalty amidst the slump in smartphone sales. A beta version of this digi-health powerhouse will be available this month for their Galaxy Watch 5 and newer models.
What's different with the latest update, you ask? Pak believes Samsung's edge lies in its integration with everyday household appliances and electronics, giving them a unique advantage in bringing health into the home.
As the world's leading smartphone manufacturer by market share (according to prominent market research firms), Samsung has a bigger mountain to climb in the smartwatch realm. The company took only a 6% slice of the global smartwatch market in Q1 of 2025, while Apple took the lead with 20%.
Apple has excelled in marketing the Apple Watch as a seamless smartphone companion, notes Jitesh Ubrani, a research manager for the IDC. "Apple is closest to making the smartwatch a 'must-have' than any other brand or ecosystem," Ubrani told CNN.
Samsung aims to distinguish itself by focusing on preventive medicine, guiding users towards better eating habits and ensuring quality sleep before health conditions crop up. However, it faces tough competition from up-and-coming health tech companies like Oura, which proselytizes a similarly proactive approach to health monitoring.
Moreover, the smartwatch update includes a feature for assessing antioxidant intake, using LED lights to gauge beta carotene levels in the skin. Now, you might be thinking, "What’s the deal with beta carotene?" Beta carotene is a type of antioxidant found in foods such as carrots, sweet potatoes, and spinach, which plays a crucial role in overall health. This feature provides an estimate of antioxidant levels without depending on self-reported vegetable consumption by measuring the amount present in the body.
Other key features of the upcoming update include bedtime recommendations and a "running coach" designed to help wearers reach their running goals. Samsung's updates follow Apple's lead with their Workout Buddy announcement on June 9th.
Pak revealed that Samsung is also developing an AI-powered health chatbot, although specific project details remain under wraps for now. Rumours suggest that Apple is working on a similar tool as well.
Delving beyond watches, Pak sees potential for smart glasses to introduce new health features, particularly meal logging. The technology may soon detect whether a meal contains allergens by analyzing the plate using AI models integrated with glasses. It's an evolution from existing services that analyze food nutrients by snapping photos and processing them through AI models like ChatGPT or Google's Gemini models.
"It’s not a technology problem," said Pak, former chief medical officer for 3M Health Information Systems. "It’s just about packaging the technology capabilities that we have today."
Intriguingly, Samsung previously announced it was developing smart glasses powered by Google's Android XR software, yet their smartwatches remain incompatible with iPhones (which account for nearly 20% of the market share), creating a challenging hurdle for Samsung.
Refuting the possibility of reuniting with Apple, Pak admitted, "There are always discussions going on. But no decision has been made as of yet."
This revamped smartwatch seems to redefine the role of the modern-day wearable, transforming it from a mere fitness tracker into a proactive health companion. Samsung is actively stepping up its game, weaving together large-scale health data from Samsung Health, and tailoring health insights to promote long-term wellness. Stay tuned!
- Samsung is aiming to set itself apart in the digital health market, focusing on preventive medicine, encouraging healthy diets, and ensuring quality sleep to combat health conditions before they arise.
- The latest smartwatch update from Samsung integrates with everyday household appliances and electronics, giving it a unique edge in bringing health into the home.
- The update includes a feature for assessing antioxidant intake using LED lights to gauge beta carotene levels in the skin, providing an estimate of antioxidant levels without relying on self-reported vegetable consumption.
- Samsung is also developing smart glasses equipped with AI models to analyze meals, identify allergens, and log nutrition information, marking an evolution from existing food analysis services.
