In its recent annual developers' conference, New York-listed Chinese health technology firm Zepp Health showcased its latest range of products, which include its AI wearable chip for health devices, a smartwatch operating system and a blood pressure measurement feature on its smartwatch brand.

Latest OS

The new Zepp OS will not only be an operating system for its smartwatch but also the core of an open health management platform. The company will be opening the framework of its "Mini Program" for developers to create new apps that leverage Zepp Health's data and intelligence. 

Zepp Health Chairman and CEO Wang Huang envisions their OS to be used by thousands of developers for "tens of thousands of mini smartwatch applications".

"The difficulty of developing such a comprehensive smartwatch OS focused on health management from the ground up is definitely as difficult as developing a new chip," he added.

Aside from many streamlined dynamic visual effects, the latest smartwatch OS features a reliable and stable Bluetooth channel for enhanced connection with smartphones, smart homes and other health devices, as well as payment systems. It supports 4G and 5G modules and enables smartwatches to directly connect to the cloud. Moreover, it supports internet cloud service apps for music, voice commands and fitness, such as NetEase Music, Spotify, Alexa, Joyrun or Strava.

By comparison, the Zepp OS at 55 megabytes is one-tenth of the size of the company's previous Amazfit OS and one twenty-eighth of the Apple WatchOS 8 size. Its operating power consumption is 65% lesser than the Amazfit OS.

The Zepp OS is slated for launch in the fourth quarter of this year.

New generation AI chip

The Huangshan 2s presents performance increases from its predecessor. It has reduced operating power consumption by over half and dormant power consumption by 93%; it has also improved graphics performance by 67%.

The company claims that the latest AI wearable processor is the first to employ a dual-core RISC-V instruction set architecture.

The final design of the chip was made in March. Soon, it will become one of the key smart wearable chips in the third-generation Amazfit smartwatches.

Blood pressure measurement capability

The PumpBeats system runs on an algorithm that is based on the Huangshan AI chip and biosensor array. It measures blood pressure within 30 seconds via optical sensors built on the Amazfit smartwatches.

Based on findings from a clinical trial done at the First Hospital of Peking University, there are deviations in the PumpBeats measurement of less than 5.14mmHg in systolic and less than 4.88mmHg in diastolic pressure.

The health measurement feature is also set for a fourth-quarter launch on Amazfit products.

Additionally, the company is currently developing a continuous blood pressure monitoring feature.

THE LARGER TREND

In late February this year, the former Huami Corporation changed its name to Zepp Health to reflect the company's deepening commitment to health technology.

The license for the Zepp OS, along with the Huangshan 2s chip, was granted to Yitong Technology who will integrate them with smart cars and smart home appliances. In January, Zepp Health entered into a definitive agreement to acquire a minority stake in Yitong for 959.68 million yuan ($147.08 million) in cash.

"I believe the industrial health technology space represents a tremendous opportunity for us to apply our expertise in precision sensors, biometrics, AI chips and engineering capabilities focused on miniaturisation and health data analytics. The evolution and repositioning of the company to Zepp Health more clearly articulate our mission to investors, partners and customers, as we are now well-positioned to solve the biggest challenges facing the health technology industry," Zepp Health Chairman and CEO Wang Huang previously said.