Biometric data company Huami has released two new wearables with AI capabilities that can track athletic activity and monitor heart activity. The new devices became available in China this week and will ship internationally later in 2018.
The Amazfit Verge smartwatch has built-in GPS, sleep tracking, and custom algorithms to identify 10 different sports. The second of the two releases, the Amazfit Health Band 1S, has the more unique capability. Its predecessor, which was released in April 2017, was touted as the first wrist-worn ECG tracker to track heart rate and heart-rate variability. HRV is an increasingly important metric in fitness.
The Amazfit Health Band 1S screens the wearer’s heart rhythm and can send an alert upon detecting abnormalities that could be a sign of atrial fibrillation (AFib), an irregular heart beat. That triggers the recommendation of a more detailed ECG test. Huami’s new wearable processor has an AI neural network with four tools: ECG, ECG Pro, a cardiac biometrics engine named HeartID, and a Heart Rhythm Abnormality Monitoring Engine (Arrhythmia).
“The past three years have ushered incredible growth not only for the Amazfit brand but the wearables market as a whole,” Frederik Hermann, head of U.S. marketing and sales for Huami, said in a news release. “Wearable technology promises infinite benefits, but widespread consumer adoption is often limited by expense. We are making clinical-grade technology and personalized health data more accessible so people are empowered to take control of their wellbeing and establish life-changing health habits.”
SportTechie Takeaway
Huami is the sole partner of Xiamoi, which is currently second only to Apple among wearable companies. More intricate heart monitoring is the new wave of wrist wearables. Companies like Whoop, Polar, and Apple are all seeking to advance the technology in this market; Apple recently became the first to offer an ECG assessment with FDA approval. Huami’s Health Band 1S doesn’t have the domestic institutional backing from the FDA, but its listed price is well below the Apple Watch at only 699 yuan, or about $102.