What's new in health tech?

Episode Summary

Executive Summary: This Tech Life episode focuses on health tech from CES, highlighting a shift from flashy gadgets to data-driven prevention and personalization. It showcases devices for cardiovascular monitoring, perimenopause tracking, children’s ear infections, and LED skin therapy, then contrasts consumer empowerment with risks in crypto theft, where individuals increasingly become targets and victims have little recourse.

Main Topics: Health tech trends at CES (Priority: 5/5): The episode opens with a broad look at digital health at CES, emphasizing that the industry is booming and that this year’s emphasis was less on new hardware and more on extracting useful insights from health data. Withings Body Scan 2 and longevity tracking (Priority: 5/5): A smart scale-style device performs a cardiovascular and metabolic assessment, claiming to measure more than 60 biomarkers and translate them into a ‘health trajectory’ focused on prevention and silent disease detection. Perry wearable for perimenopause (Priority: 4/5): A wearable device aims to objectively detect perimenopause symptoms using sensors and AI, offering women data-backed guidance on hot flushes, anxiety, cycle changes, and night sweats. EarFlow for children’s ear infections (Priority: 4/5): A child-friendly device uses air pressure and a game-like interface to help relieve chronic ear infections non-invasively, potentially reducing the need for ear tube surgery. L’Oreal LED light therapy mask (Priority: 3/5): L’Oreal presents a thinner, more flexible LED face mask designed for better comfort and skin contact, positioning design and usability as key to effective at-home beauty tech. AI, biological age, and personalized health data (Priority: 5/5): Guest Lara Lewington argues CES health tech is increasingly about AI-driven interpretation, long-term pattern detection, and personalized tracking rather than simply counting steps or showcasing new devices. Crypto theft targeting individuals (Priority: 5/5): The show shifts to cybersecurity, where BBC correspondent Joe Tidy explains that individual crypto holders are increasingly being targeted by organized cybercriminals, including North Korea-linked groups, with victims often unable to recover stolen funds.

Key Arguments: Health tech is increasingly about prevention and pattern recognition rather than one-off measurements or novelty gadgets. The most valuable health devices are those that can convert continuous data into actionable insights over time. AI can meaningfully improve health products through personalization, but the term is also overused as marketing hype. Measuring biological age can reveal trends, but the exact number is controversial and less useful than tracking changes over time. Wearables and consumer devices are becoming part of doctors’ broader health picture even if they are not formal medical devices. Crypto’s promise of self-custody also creates a major vulnerability: if your wallet credentials are stolen, there is often no safety net and almost no recourse.

Data Points: Withings biomarkers: more than 60 - Body Scan 2 is described as measuring over 60 biomarkers in about 90 seconds. Body Scan 2 scan time: 90 seconds - The cardiovascular and metabolic assessment is said to complete in about 90 seconds. Hypertension prevalence: 1 in 3 adults worldwide - Cited by Withings as a reason silent chronic disease monitoring matters. Perry wear time: 7 to 10 days - The perimenopause wearable is worn with adhesive and can be used normally during bathing or swimming. LED mask wavelengths: 830 nm and 630 nm - L’Oreal says the mask uses two wavelengths for collagen and cell regeneration. Visible results timeline: 2 to 3 weeks - L’Oreal claims users can begin seeing visible results in this period. Crypto ownership estimate: around 560 million people - Approximate global number of cryptocurrency owners mentioned in the discussion. Crypto theft losses: more than $3 billion - Chinalysis estimate of cryptocurrency stolen last year. Bybit hack: $1.5 billion - Referenced as a record-breaking hack blamed on North Korea. Exir exoskeleton lift capacity increase: 30 kg to 38 kg - Lara Lewington cites the exoskeleton improving how much workers can lift without back stress. Age comparison: 37 heart age - Presenter’s own result from the Withings device, stated as one year younger than actual age. EarFlow target age group: 2 to 5 year olds - Company says the device is designed for young children whose parents want to avoid surgery. Victim crypto holdings: $300,000 - A UK couple’s Cardano holdings rose to around this amount before being stolen. Victim traceable wallet value: $700,000 Bitcoin - A young attacker claimed to hold this amount, shown to the reporter as evidence of gains from targeting victims. Four sensors in Perry: EDA, accelerometer, blood flow, temperature - Heidi Davis explains the wearable’s sensor suite.

Pivotal Quotes: "It felt for me this year, less about new hardware and more about what we're doing with the data." — Lara Lewington: Her overall assessment of health tech trends at CES. "We are able to measure more than 60 biomarkers that we translate into a health trajectory, a new concept that we are introducing to tell you whether you are gaining or losing LC years." — Antoine Jassin: Withings explains the purpose of Body Scan 2. "So, what we really created this for is for women that are wondering: am I in perimenopause?" — Heidi Davis: Perry’s mission for women seeking answers about symptoms and diagnosis.

Implications: The episode suggests consumer health tech is maturing into data-rich prevention tools, but users must weigh privacy, validity, and hype. Meanwhile, crypto holders should expect rising theft risk and limited recovery options.