Future Samsung smartwatches might keep tabs on glucose levels without any needles
What you need to know
Samsung is pushing boundaries by aiming to incorporate non-invasive glucose monitoring into its wearables.
Hon Pak, Samsung's digital health chief, confirmed the company's active push for glucose monitoring technology, potentially eliminating the need for invasive blood tests.
While Apple is rumored to be exploring a similar technology, neither Samsung nor Apple has successfully brought non-invasive glucose monitoring to the market yet.
Samsung is hustling to outpace Apple in rolling out tech that monitors blood glucose without any pricking.
According to a fresh report from Bloomberg (paywalled), Samsung is preparing a new feature for its future Galaxy smartwatches: a non-invasive blood glucose monitoring feature.
"If we can do continuous blood pressure and glucose, we're in a whole different ballgame," Hon Pak, Samsung's mobile digital health chief, said in an interview. "I think that's where everyone is trying to get to. We're putting significant investment toward that."
Samsung presumably aims for the new capability to beef up its device health features. The South Korean tech giant recently teased the Galaxy Ring, boasting activity and sleep-tracking functionalities, with more health features likely to arrive in the future.
Currently, most glucose checks involve a skin puncture for a blood sample. Meanwhile, Apple has been rumored to be working on a non-invasive method for over a decade. Now rivals feel the burn as Apple cranks up the pressure for some worthy competition.
If Samsung pulls this off, it's a game-changer, especially for diabetics who juggle glucose level checks. But it's no walk in the park. The company is wrangling with tech innovations that have been in the lab for a while, and the key is nailing down pinpoint accuracy.
According to Bloomberg, Samsung is digging into ways to expand its health data offering for users. More specifically, the company is exploring sensors all over the body to dish out more insights.
Pak, unfortunately, didn't drop any specific dates for the rollout of a glucose monitoring capability, but he's crossing his fingers that we might get our hands on continuous blood pressure and glucose monitoring in the next five years. This means the feature will not likely debut on the Galaxy Watch 7.
Just like other new health technologies on the rise, getting noninvasive blood glucose monitoring out there also faces some regulatory challenges. We're not sure if Samsung's already consulting with regulators to greenlight its glucose-monitoring wearable.
Android Central has reached out to Samsung for a comment on this and they did not get back to us in time for publication.
However, medical experts don't advise ditching those finger-prick tests just yet. It turns out that replacing them might not be the most practical or beneficial move.
