Your Samsung phone and watch could soon warn you of Alzheimer’s disease

Smartwatches can already alert users to heart conditions and other potential health risks, but what about Alzheimer’s disease? Well, Samsung has announced technological advancements that could eventually make this a reality on your wearable and phone.

Samsung announced in a blog post that its researchers have developed a way to track changes in cognitive function via your phone and watch. The researchers were able to measure symptoms of cognitive decline by tracking phone and watch app usage, typing speed, message patterns, call frequency, sleep, and “voice.”

The Galaxy maker elaborated on this approach in its post:

Recalling and repeating short sentences can evaluate short-term memory-related brain regions, while assessing speech fluency and accuracy reveals the state of language ability. Likewise, the regularity and variety of app and messaging use, along with call frequency, can offer insights into social networks and the brain’s executive functions.

In short, the study demonstrated that brain regions responsible for language and short-term memory — typically impaired by Alzheimer’s disease — can be assessed through voice data. The findings also indicate that declines in social and behavioral abilities are associated with patterns of app use, messaging and call frequency.

Samsung also expanded on two of its studies. The first one focused on analyzing smartphone keyboard typing patterns, like typing speed and correction patterns. Meanwhile, the second study used phones and Galaxy Watches to track walking patterns for early detection of cognitive decline. The company claimed that both studies reveal performance “comparable to hospital-based dementia screening tests.”

Don’t expect Alzheimer’s detection on your next Galaxy phone or watch, though. Samsung says it’s continuing to develop the tech for improved accuracy and validation. Nevertheless, this could be a potentially life-changing addition to Galaxy devices.