Apple is still “many years away” from finalizing a non-invasive glucose monitoring feature for Apple Watch, despite over 15 years of work to get the feature ready for a consumer device, according to Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman.
Non-invasive glucose monitor technology will allow diabetics and others to test their blood glucose levels with no need for a skin prick. Apple has been working on the idea of a non-invasive glucose monitor since the company’s Steve Jobs era. With such a sensor, an Apple Watch could warn users if they are pre-diabetic, allowing them to proactively take steps to possibly reverse the deadly condition. Early detection is your friend when battling diabetes.
Apple’s technology includes a silicon photonics chip that uses optical absorption spectroscopy to shine specific waveforms of light from a laser under the skin to determine the concentration of glucose in the body.
Apple’s target function for the monitor is for a wearable device that is able to warn people if they’re prediabetic, allowing them to make lifestyle changes to avoid full-blown diabetes. Regulatory approval from the government is still in the early discussion stage.
In March 2023, Gurman said a non-invasive glucose monitoring feature for Apple Watch was still three to seven years away.
At the time, the technology was said to be in the “proof-of-concept” stages but it still required miniaturization in order to fit in the Apple Watch. The prototype device was said to be about the size of an iPhone and could be worn on a user’s arm. A prior version is said to have required a tabletop.
Gurman said Apple “still needs to perfect the algorithms and on-board sensors” to bring the technology to market. The company also needs to “shrink it down to the size of a module that can fit in the small and thin package that is an Apple Watch.” Gurman believed this process “will take another three to seven years at least.” This means there could still be several years before the sensor is ready for prime time.
