iOS 19 to introduce 'AI doctor' for personalized health tracking
What's the story
Apple is said to be working on a major update for its Health app, which would be revealed with iOS 19 at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman says this upgrade will bring an AI doctor feature to offer personalized health tracking and insights for users.
Apple has been gradually adding more health-focused facilities into its products, from heart-rate monitoring, SpO2 stats, and ECG to a hearing-aid feature and even health metrics in iPhone's Health app.
AI integration
Apple's vision extends beyond passive data collection
Apple's long-term plan seems to go beyond just collecting health data. The company is now looking to provide health advice powered by artificial intelligence (AI).
For this, Apple has been developing a revamped Health app, codenamed Project Mulberry, which will be deeply integrated into iOS 19.
The reimagined app will have an AI health coach analyzing health data on iPhone and giving personalized recommendations to improve fitness, nutrition, and well-being.
Virtual assistant
The AI doctor will function as a virtual medical assistant
The AI health coach, as described in Gurman's Power On newsletter, will be a virtual medical assistant inside the Health app.
It will analyze data collected from an iPhone, Apple Watch, and possibly other health-tracking accessories.
Using Apple's machine learning capabilities, this AI doctor could provide personalized health insights for users based on heart rate patterns, sleep cycles, activity levels, and other factors.
Expert collaboration
Apple has enlisted a team of doctors for AI training
To ensure the accuracy of its AI model, Apple has reportedly hired a team of physicians to help train it.
The company is also working with external medical professionals, including experts in sleep science, nutrition, physical therapy, cardiology as well as mental health.
They are expected to contribute educational content to make the AI-powered health coach within the Health app more functional and reliable.
Food tracking
Apple Health+ will offer food tracking
Internally, some Apple employees have reportedly referred to the AI-powered health coach as "Health+."
However, it remains unclear if this will be a separate subscription-based service or a free addition to the Health app.
Among other features, food tracking is expected to be a major addition in the app's overhaul. Users shall be able to log their meals and get nutritional insights and healthier suggestions from the AI assistant.