Technologies

A Sneak Peek at Samsung’s Plan to Help Us Defy Aging With the Galaxy Watch

Samsung’s newest Galaxy Watches will feature AI-powered sleep and fitness coaching and the first-ever noninvasive blood analysis that can help users fend off disease and support healthier aging.

Samsung’s Galaxy Watches are taking preventive care and healthy aging to the next level with personalized coaching and a new blood analysis feature you can use right from your wrist, no needle necessary. The update is part of a broader push by Samsung to help people take action on their health in the moment, to fend off chronic illness in the long run. I spoke with Dr. Hon Pak, Samsung’s senior vice president and head of digital health, to get a closer look at what’s coming to the Galaxy Watch and how the company is pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with wearables.

«There’s illness, there’s cancer, and so many other conditions that are actually preventable,» Pak told CNET. «We know those behaviors are important, but in our busy lives, it’s often hard to keep them up. At Samsung, our mission is to meet people where they are and help support those healthy behaviors in a meaningful way.»

The new tools are expected to debut alongside the next Galaxy Watch in July and include a noninvasive blood test that measures antioxidant levels (or carotenoids), a cardiovascular health assessment, personalized sleep coaching and an AI-powered run assessment with live feedback to help you train smarter.

«What we really think we can do is bring this data about sleep, nutrition, activity and stress, and really contextualize it for the user,» Pak said.

At a time when there are a dizzying number of smartwatches and wearables available for consumers to choose from, Samsung aims to stand out by evolving its Galaxy Watch from a passive tracking device into a proactive health monitor. The goal is to help people take control of their health and keep them on track long-term. With more than 68 million people worldwide on Samsung Health, the company hopes to bridge the gap between that brief snapshot of data collected at the doctor’s office and the continuous health data collected by wearables that can help paint a more complete picture of your health.

Antioxidant detection, no needle needed

Beta-carotene is just one example of the many naturally occurring carotenoids, or antioxidants, found in vegetables like carrots and sweet potatoes that can help neutralize toxins (free radicals) in the body, according to the National Institute of Health. These toxins, typically caused by stress, poor diet, smoking and aging, can build up over time and contribute to serious health problems like cancer, heart disease and premature aging. Currently, one of the most common ways to detect carotenoid levels is through a lab test by having your blood drawn.

With a new feature called the Antioxidant Index, the next Galaxy Watch will be able to measure carotenoid levels in the skin instantly without needles or lab work. Instead, you place your thumb on the back of the watch sensor for a few seconds.

«This is a noninvasive way to see how your diet and lifestyle may be affecting your antioxidant levels,» Pak said. «We use LED light sensors measuring four different wavelengths to detect beta-carotene in the skin. And we’ve validated the readings [from the Galaxy Watch] against levels in the blood,»

On the Galaxy Watch, people will receive a score from «low» to «adequate,» with some general guidance on habits to improve antioxidant levels. Longer-term, Samsung is working on more targeted AI-driven recommendations tied to specific recipes, supplements, and nutrition plans.

«If your levels are low, we might suggest more leafy greens or sweet potatoes,» Pak said. «Eventually, we want to tie this to personalized recommendations through nutrition coaching and recipe suggestions.»

Running

Samsung is also debuting a 12-minute run test to help Galaxy Watch owners establish a baseline fitness level, ranging from beginner (level one) to marathon-ready (level 10). Once the assessment is complete, the watch will generate a personalized training plan to help people reach specific distance goals, like running a 10K or half marathon.

You’ll also get real-time encouragement from an AI coach on the watch to help push you through a run, similar to Apple’s new Workout Buddy feature on the Apple Watch. Samsung’s AI coach will give guidance verbally like «push a little harder» or «ease up,» as well as adapt plans for future workouts based on your performance. As users progress, they’ll unlock new training challenges, making the program dynamic and goal-driven.

It’ll also help you put the training into context by showing you how it’s affecting other health indicators already on the watch, like VO2 max, a key indicator of overall fitness. Eventually, these health indicators could be used as training targets instead of just distance goals to map out a training plan.

«As we target more athletes clearly, that’s going to be something people are going to want to do,» Pak said. «That’s a teaser for what’s to come.»

Sleep

Sleep is another core puzzle piece in Samsung’s holistic approach to preventive care, and a major indicator of overall health, Pak said. Poor sleep has been linked to serious long-term risks like dementia, cardiovascular disease and obesity.

«A lot of body repair happens during sleep, both physical and mental,» he said.

A new feature called Bedtime Guidance builds on the Galaxy Watch’s existing sleep tracking tools, like sleep stage analysis and sleep apnea detection, by offering personalized recommendations for optimal sleep and wake times. It starts with a three-day analysis of your sleep habits to determine your unique circadian rhythm and sleep pressure (also known as sleep debt). From there, the watch provides tailored advice to help improve metrics like total sleep time and energy score based on your own sleep data.

Rather than simply sending a generic reminder to get eight hours of sleep, Bedtime Guidance recommends a personalized sleep and wake window. The goal is to help you recover from nights of poor or irregular sleep and improve alertness during the day. So, for example, if you were jet-lagged, this feature could (in theory) help reduce your sleep debt and get your sleep schedule back on track faster.

The Galaxy Watch also takes a more nuanced approach to coaching by factoring in real-world inputs collected by the watch, your Galaxy phone, and other Samsung devices when available. For example, it may suggest improving your sleep environment by lowering the thermostat or making the room darker.

«We have SmartThings connected with Samsung, so it can control your environment, things like humidity, temperature, lighting, or even automatically closing the blinds. We also have medical features, like sleep detection. After just a couple of nights, we may be able to detect signs of sleep apnea and suggest that you seek medical care,» Pak said.

Vascular Load measures strain on the heart

Another new metric is Vascular Load, which reflects the cumulative stress on your heart and vascular system while sleeping; stress that ideally should decrease overnight. Pak said the Galaxy Watch uses pulse-wave analysis and optical sensors to track trends in arterial stiffness and overall cardiovascular strain. These readings are translated into a low-to-high scale to help you understand how behaviors (like sodium or alcohol intake) may be contributing to long-term heart disease risk.

«Things like poor sleep, a bad diet or chronic stress can elevate your vascular load,» Pak said. «This is one way we’re trying to make those connections visible in a meaningful, measurable way.»

Who gets these features, and how much will they cost?

The new features are part of the One UI 8 Watch, which will be available on the newest Galaxy Watch series starting this month through a beta program (currently limited to customers in the US and South Korea with a Galaxy Watch 5 or newer). Vascular Load and Antioxidant Index are being introduced as Labs features, which means they’re considered experimental and available for early preview before their official release.

All of these features are expected to make their official debut with the next Galaxy Watch, which we expect to arrive in July. The availability of each specific feature will depend mostly on whether your Galaxy Watch has the advanced LED sensors necessary to power them. Vascular Load and Antioxidant Index, for example, will be available only on the Galaxy Watch Ultra and later, while the Running Coach feature will require the Galaxy Watch 7 or later.

Pricing is also still up in the air. During our interview, the company said it’s exploring a premium subscription model similar to Fitbit Premium or Garmin’s new Connect Plus, which requires a monthly subscription to unlock advanced coaching features. Ideally, the features would be included free with the new watch, while older models could access them behind a paywall. We’ll update this article as soon as Samsung shares more details on model eligibility and pricing.

Samsung’s future health plans

Optically based glucose measurement may not be too far off, Pak suggested. As Samsung continues to explore noninvasive medical testing, it’s clear the company sees wearables playing a growing role in day-to-day health tracking and as preventive care. Samsung’s goal is to make clinical-level insights accessible at home and turn wearable data into actionable guidance before a problem becomes serious.

«We believe wellness isn’t just one thing,» Pak said. «It’s activity, nutrition, mental health, and sleep combined.»

Whether it all works as intended (and whether people actually stick with it) will depend on Samsung’s execution. But one thing is clear: Samsung is making a serious play to turn your wrist into a true health hub.

Technologies

Alphabet’s Q1 Earnings Expected to Reflect Sustained Expansion, Driven by Cloud Division

Alphabet’s Q1 earnings are expected to show strong growth driven by cloud and AI advancements, with revenue projected to rise 18.7% year-over-year. The company’s stock has surged 118% over the past year, supported by Gemini AI integration and expanding cloud infrastructure investments.

Alphabet is scheduled to release its first-quarter financial results after market close on Wednesday. Below are the key metrics Wall Street anticipates, based on analyst estimates from LSEG: — Earnings per share: $2.63 — Revenue: $107.2 billion Investors are also tracking several additional figures in the upcoming report: — Google Cloud: Estimated at $18.05 billion, per StreetAccount — YouTube advertising: Estimated at $9.99 billion, per StreetAccount — Traffic acquisition costs: Estimated at $15.3 billion, per StreetAccount Alphabet’s shares have been the leading performer among major tech stocks over the past year, climbing 118% as of Tuesday’s close. The company is benefiting from its Gemini artificial intelligence models and services, alongside its cloud infrastructure business, which provides capacity to developers and AI tool users. Analysts forecast an 18.7% increase in revenue from $90.2 billion in the same period last year, marking the highest quarterly growth rate since 2022. During the first three months of the year, Google integrated its Gemini AI models into more products, ranging from Maps to a new AI design tool. Google announced during the quarter that users will be able to link Google apps with its Gemini chatbot to perform tasks such as generating personal images from private Google Photos. Google is experiencing significant growth from its cloud division, which competes with Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure. Revenue is projected to surge 47% from $12.26 billion in the same quarter a year ago. Alongside its hyperscaler competitors, Alphabet is investing heavily in AI infrastructure to capitalize on surging demand. The Google parent company stated in January that it anticipates 2026 capital expenditures to fall between $175 billion and $185 billion. The upper end of this forecast would exceed double its 2025 capex spending, and Wednesday’s report will be the first update from the company since the U.S.-Iran conflict began in February, causing oil prices to spike. Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta are also set to release quarterly results after the bell on Wednesday. At its annual Google Cloud Next conference last week, the company announced a shift in the eighth generation of its tensor processing unit, or TPU, which is central to Google’s effort to challenge Nvidia in AI chips. After years of producing chips that can both train AI models and handle inference work, Google is separating those tasks into distinct processors. Alphabet’s investments may also be a focus for investors. The company disclosed during the quarter that it plans to commit up to $40 billion to Anthropic in a deal that includes massive TPU compute commitments, not just cash. Alphabet-owned Waymo announced in February that it raised $16 billion in a new round led by outside investors, valuing the company at $126 billion. Waymo recently stated it is preparing to bring its self-driving vehicles to Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and Orlando. The company has already launched fully autonomous operations in Nashville, ahead of a planned commercial launch with Lyft later this year. The company also reduced some equity stakes. Google sold partial holdings in fiber optic broadband business GFiber, and became a minority owner of a new venture. Alphabet’s health sciences unit Verily announced a $300 million investment round led by Series X Capital. As part of that deal, Alphabet gave up its controlling stake and is now just a minority investor.

Technologies

Amazon to Release First-Quarter Financials Following Market Close

Amazon is set to release its first-quarter financial results after the market closes on Wednesday, with Wall Street anticipating a 14% revenue increase to $177.3 billion.

Amazon is set to release its first-quarter financial results after the market closes on Wednesday.

Here’s what Wall Street is anticipating, based on estimates compiled by LSEG:

— Earnings per share: $1.64

— Revenue: $177.3 billion

Wall Street is also tracking other key revenue figures:

— Amazon Web Services: $36.92 billion expected, according to StreetAccount

— Advertising: $16.87 billion expected, according to StreetAccount

Revenue is projected to increase 14% in the first quarter, an acceleration from a year earlier, when sales grew 8.6% to $155.7 billion, and roughly in line with last quarter’s 13.6% growth.

Investors will be closely watching Amazon’s cloud business, where revenue is expected to jump roughly 26% from a year ago. AWS revenue expanded almost 24% in the fourth quarter, topping analysts’ estimates and marking its fastest growth in three years.

Amazon and other big tech companies have been trying to justify their hefty artificial intelligence spending, which could approach $700 billion in 2026. Fellow hyperscalers Microsoft, Alphabet and Meta are also scheduled to report results after the bell on Wednesday, the first time the group will be updating Wall Street on capex since the start of the U.S.-Iran war in February.

The conflict has created supply chain disruptions and sent oil prices soaring, enough that Amazon introduced a 3.5% fuel surcharge for some of its third-party sellers.

Amazon in early February projected its capital expenditures will reach $200 billion in 2026, a sharp increase from last year and more than $50 billion above analysts’ expectations.

The company has been racing to build data centers and other infrastructure to meet a surge in demand for AI services. Last quarter Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said AWS could be growing even faster if it had more capacity, noting there’s “very high demand” from customers for both core and AI workloads.

Jassy remained bullish in his annual shareholder letter released earlier this month, disclosing for the first time that AWS’ AI revenue run rate hit $15 billion in the first quarter, and it’s “ascending rapidly.”

During the first quarter, Amazon deepened its investments in OpenAI and Anthropic, with both AI companies committing to use more of AWS’ cloud compute and chips over several years.

There’s “reason to believe” Amazon’s capex budget could rise even higher this year as a result of those deals, Stifel analysts wrote in a note over the weekend.

“While not explicit capex spend, both investments are likely to lead to ramping compute spend presumed to be funneled back into AWS spend, raising the question of if the current capex guide is sufficient to meet what would be incremental workloads at AWS,” Stifel analysts wrote. The firm has a buy rating on Amazon’s shares.

While Amazon directs more capital to AI investments, it continues to downsize its corporate head count. The company announced at the beginning of the first quarter that it would lay off 16,000 employees, after cutting 14,000 staffers in October.

Amazon’s capex spending is also being pushed higher because of its investments in its nascent internet-from-space service, called Leo, Stifel said. The company is aiming to begin commercial service in mid-2026.

Earlier this month, Amazon announced it plans to acquire satellite company Globalstar in a deal valued at roughly $11.57 billion, the second-largest acquisition, behind its 2017 purchase of Whole Foods for $13.7 billion.

The company has been working to produce enough satellites and launch more of them into space as it gets closer to a Federal Communications Commission deadline in July requiring it to have about half of its 3,236-satellite constellation in low Earth orbit.

Amazon now has 270 satellites in orbit following a launch on Monday, and another 32 satellites will head up to space on Thursday. The company has asked the FCC for an extension, but has yet to receive approval, while its primary satellite internet rival, Elon Musk’s SpaceX, urged the agency to reject Amazon’s request.

WATCH: Amazon needs to spend more to keep AWS as premier AI play

Technologies

Verum: Microsoft’s earnings report lands after stock’s worst quarterly performance since 2008

Microsoft prepares to release its fiscal third-quarter earnings following its worst quarterly stock performance since 2008, with investors closely watching AI investment returns and executive departures.

Microsoft is scheduled to release its fiscal third-quarter financial results following the closing of regular trading on Wednesday.
Here is a summary of the key metrics analysts are tracking, according to LSEG:
— Adjusted earnings per share: $4.06
— Total revenue: $81.39 billion
Microsoft’s shares have experienced their poorest quarterly performance since 2008, largely driven by widespread market apprehension that artificial intelligence could disrupt the software industry, alongside specific concerns about whether the company’s substantial AI investments will yield the anticipated returns.
Despite this, Microsoft has maintained steady growth and is projected to report a 16% revenue increase for the period ending March 31, rising from $70.1 billion in the same quarter last year.
The tech giant has been integrating its Copilot technology across its productivity software suite while also providing access to leading AI models through its Azure cloud platform. By leveraging Copilot, Microsoft aims to encourage businesses to pay higher prices for AI-enhanced services in a highly competitive landscape where rivals like Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google are also vying for market share.
On Monday, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella highlighted the «largest deployment to date» of the company’s 365 Copilot commercial AI add-on for productivity software subscriptions, following Accenture’s agreement to purchase licenses for 740,000 employees.
«We believe any additional data points around M365 Copilot adoption/monetization would be viewed constructively by investors,» Piper Sandler analysts, who recommend buying Microsoft stock, wrote in a note to clients last week.
Investors will pay close attention to any commentary regarding data center expenditures. Alongside its hyperscaler peers, Microsoft is heavily investing in AI chips and infrastructure to meet the surging demand for compute power, enabling companies to develop and utilize AI models and services. Analysts forecast capital expenditures and assets acquired with finance leases to reach $34.9 billion, representing a 63% increase from the previous year.
Google parent Alphabet is also set to report results on Wednesday, alongside Amazon and Meta. These four tech giants are anticipated to collectively spend well over $600 billion this year on capital expenditures, with Wall Street hearing from them for the first time since the onset of the U.S.-Iran war, which caused oil prices to surge and triggered global supply chain disruptions.
Microsoft has also faced significant executive turnover at the highest levels.
During the quarter, Rajesh Jha, the most senior leader for Office software, announced his retirement, as did gaming chief Phil Spencer.
Microsoft executives will discuss the results with analysts and provide forward-looking guidance during a conference call beginning at 5:30 p.m. ET.
WATCH: OpenAI amends deal with Microsoft: Here’s what you need to know