The Apple Watch was the first new Apple product in the post-Steve Jobs era and the first developed without his input<\/a> \u2014 though Cook was adamant that his predecessor\u2019s influence could be seen and felt within the device<\/a>. Consequently, it served as a barometer for Cook\u2019s leadership and whether Apple could continue to innovate without Jobs\u2019 singular vision.<\/p>\n It was a shaky start. Apple\u2019s early gambit on the Watch as a high-end fashion piece didn\u2019t stick. But looking back, the gadget has defined the modern wearable industry<\/a>. FDA-cleared digital health screening features weren\u2019t a thing before the Series 4. Now, wearable devices across the industry can detect atrial fibrillation, hypertension, and sleep apnea. They can call emergency services if you get into a car crash or take a nasty fall. Each year, before a new Watch is announced, Apple rolls a clip of \u201cDear Tim\u201d letters where users express how the gadget saved their lives. (It\u2019s a moment Cook also called out yesterday in his letter to Apple fans<\/a>.) We\u2019ve written at The Verge about how these ads can feel like subtle<\/a> fearmongering<\/a>, but it\u2019s an undeniable fact that there are real-life people who owe their lives to the device.<\/p>\n Hypertension alerts are the latest digital health screening feature from Apple.<\/p>\n Cook was among the first tech CEOs to characterize wearables as democratizing healthcare and science<\/a>. Launching the inaugural Apple Heart Study<\/a> and the Apple Research app has opened several doors for clinical researchers. The Apple Heart Study, for example, had 400,000 participants, an unprecedented number in 2017. A few short years later, during the covid-19 pandemic, researchers used an array of wearable devices to study whether the devices could detect early signs of infectious illnesses<\/a>. One study found that the Apple Watch, could in fact, detect covid-19 up to a week early<\/a>. But the research precedent wasn\u2019t limited to Apple\u2019s devices. Major sporting organizations ended up using the Oura Ring as part of their covid-19 reintegration plans<\/a> once vaccines became more widely available. Since then, Oura has also launched a feature called Symptom Radar<\/a> to detect early health changes.<\/p>\n This idea is one we\u2019ve seen adopted by politicians as well. Current Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has also been an outspoken proponent<\/a> of \u201ctaking control of your health\u201d with wearable tech. RFK Jr. has gone as far as saying he believes wearable tech to be a pillar of the Make America Healthy Again movement. Regardless of how you view MAHA or RFK Jr.\u2019s wellness beliefs, none of that would\u2019ve been possible without the blueprint Apple set with its Apple Watch.<\/p>\n It might be tempting to downplay Cook\u2019s role in Apple\u2019s pivot to health. After all, Jony Ive often gets credited with dreaming up the Apple Watch and its iconic design. Steve Jobs\u2019 healthcare experiences while battling pancreatic cancer have also been cited as the \u201ctrue\u201d reason<\/a> behind the Apple Watch\u2019s creation. But I\u2019d argue you can\u2019t fully separate Tim Cook the man from Apple\u2019s approach to health tech.<\/p>\n For one, I must point to Slate\u2019s investigation into whether Tim Cook is secretly swole<\/a>. (Spoiler: Yes, he is.) Numerous profiles have also pointed to Cook\u2019s strict daily routine<\/a>, which starts at 4AM and includes a roughly hourlong workout at Apple\u2019s corporate gyms. In a podcast with Outside magazine<\/a>, Cook also described himself as an outdoor nerd and that exercise as a key to a good quality of life. To Fortune<\/a>, Cook called himself a \u201cfitness nut.\u201d Cook has also previously said using the Apple Watch helped him lose 30 pounds<\/a> and fine-tune his exercise routines. You can see aspects of this within Apple\u2019s Fitness Plus service, breathing reminders, and the hiking navigation features on the Apple Watch Ultra.<\/p>\n The Ultra 3\u2019s 3D-printed titanium was courtesy of John Ternus.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a bit harder to say how John Ternus, Cook\u2019s successor, will approach health when he takes over in September. As a product guy<\/a>, Ternus was behind the Apple Watch Ultra 3\u2019s 3D-printed titanium<\/a> and improved repairability. (He was a collegiate swimming champ<\/a>, so perhaps we\u2019ll see expanded features in that arena too.) Apple reportedly still hasn\u2019t given up on noninvasive glucose monitoring<\/a>. And in a recent interview<\/a>, Apple told me that it plans to extend health features to other devices \u2014 something it\u2019s already done with<\/a> the AirPods Pro<\/a>, which offer both heart-rate monitoring and hearing tests. The company is also in the middle of an open-ended, five-year-long clinical research study<\/a> to help develop future health features.<\/p>\n Cook has set a strong foundation and lead, but the gap is closing. Oura and Whoop, in particular, continue to barrel forward in setting new wearable health tech trends<\/a>. But, 30 years from now, when we\u2019re all wearing glucose monitors and possibly getting illness alerts from our earbuds, we\u2019ll be able to point back to Cook\u2019s tenure and say this is when it all started.<\/p>\n Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.Victoria SongClose Victoria Song<\/p>\n Senior Reviewer, Wearable Tech<\/p>\n Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n FollowFollow<\/p>\n See All by Victoria Song<\/a><\/p>\n AppleClose<\/p>\n Apple<\/p>\n Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n FollowFollow<\/p>\n See All Apple<\/a><\/p>\n FitnessClose<\/p>\n Fitness<\/p>\n Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n FollowFollow<\/p>\n See All Fitness<\/a><\/p>\n GadgetsClose<\/p>\n Gadgets<\/p>\n Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n FollowFollow<\/p>\n See All Gadgets<\/a><\/p>\n HealthClose<\/p>\n Health<\/p>\n Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n FollowFollow<\/p>\n See All Health<\/a><\/p>\n ScienceClose<\/p>\n Science<\/p>\n Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n FollowFollow<\/p>\n See All Science<\/a><\/p>\n TechClose<\/p>\n Tech<\/p>\n Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.<\/p>\n FollowFollow<\/p>\n![\"Hypertension](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/257971_Apple_Watch_Ultra_3_AKrales_0123.jpg\"\/)
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