I've been tracking biometric data about my body since what feels like the dawn of time (or at least the dawn of wearables). I ran a half-marathon with the first Fitbit tracker, reviewed the very first Apple Watch and used the first smartphone-connected thermometer for ovulation tracking back when it was a pen-and-paper operation for most.
Collecting data about my body isn't just second nature; it's practically part of my job description. And for years, it's been entirely on me to overanalyze that mountain of metrics and figure out how to turn it into something useful.
So when AI health coaches started surfacing from Google, Samsung, Apple, Oura and others, promising to shoulder that mental load, I was all in. You mean to tell me I don't have to decode every tiny fluctuation in my data on my own anymore?
CNET
Most of us can't afford a real-life wellness coach to meal-prep for us, hype us up midworkout or pry the dumbbells from our fever-wrought hands when we're at the gym looking like a walking Flonase commercial. An AI coach felt like the next best thing: a nerdy, data-obsessed friend living in my phone, armed with years of my biometrics and the patience to explain them without judgment.
Over the last year, I tried them all, or at least the early versions of what they'll eventually become. Personal trainers built into fitness apps. Chatbots tucked behind wearable dashboards. Coaches that whisper advice into your earbuds or nudge you from your smartwatch. Some free, some paid.
Fitbit's new AI health coach is powered by Google's Gemini voice assistant. Jeffrey Hazelwood/CNET
But so far, none has been game-changing in the way I'd hoped, and the trade-offs of handing over my health data often felt like a high price to pay. The dream in my head doesn't quite match the reality taking shape.
Like with any new tech, it takes a while to weigh the long-term cost versus the short-term reward. But one thing is clear: This isn't a passing trend. AI-driven health tech is poised to reshape personal health care in a way that smartwatches and smart rings haven't yet.
In the best-case scenario, AI health apps and programs could help fill gaps in care and serve as a lifeline in communities with limited access to wellness information. In the worst-case scenario, they could open the floodgates to a privacy nightmare and mishandle medical data. Where this all lands depends on how we choose to use AI coaches and what guardrails are built around them.
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