Huawei adds diabetes risk alerts to GT 6 Pro smartwatches
Huawei is rolling out a new wellness feature to its smartwatches that tracks changes in blood vessel signals to assess diabetes risk. While Garmin is exploring HbA1c estimation through light-based spectroscopy, Huawei is taking a different route using PPG trends, with the feature now live on the GT 6 Pro following its debut at the 2026 World Health Expo in Dubai.
Huawei diabetes risk alerts
Huawei’s latest smartwatch update aims to offer early warning signs of diabetes risk, using optical heart rate sensors and a new app. Rather than attempting direct blood sugar measurements, it focuses on vascular and nerve signal patterns linked to long-term glucose problems.
The company is positioning the new feature in the wellness camp. Needless to say, this is not a diagnostic tool, nor is it being framed as a replacement for lab tests. Instead, the Diabetes Risk app is pitched as a prompt for further evaluation. If you land in the Medium or High category, Huawei recommends speaking with a doctor.
The core of the approach relies on PPG, the same tech used to track heart rate. Huawei’s system looks for long-term changes in those signals. Specifically, it’s tracking variations that could point to diabetes-related microvascular or neuropathic effects. These may develop silently over time and subtly affect how light is absorbed or reflected under the skin.
Huawei also leans on some scientific context here. At the Dubai launch, the company referenced studies suggesting shared genetic factors between resting heart rate and diabetes, along with vascular and nerve damage altering PPG waveforms. The idea is that these slow shifts in signal pattern, captured during daily wear, might be enough to flag emerging issues.
This is a passive feature. You wear the watch as usual, and over the course of three to 14 days, it collects enough data to assess your risk. The app then categorises results into Low, Medium or High, with only the latter two triggering a suggestion to seek medical input. The company makes clear it isn’t diagnosing anything.
The rollout starts with the Huawei GT 6 Pro. An over-the-air update activates the functionality. More models are expected to get support, though no full timeline has been confirmed yet. Users don’t need to trigger anything manually once the update is installed. Just wearing the device is enough for the system to start logging.
Professor Jiguang Wang, Director of the Shanghai Institute of Hypertension, joined Huawei on stage for the unveiling. He has worked with the brand before, including on the WATCH D series with its inflatable wrist-cuff for blood pressure readings. At the event, he spoke about the growing potential of PPG-based insights for population health, especially in early detection.
Garmin has something different in mind
It’s worth noting how this differs from what Garmin has proposed. Garmin’s recent patent goes after HbA1c estimation, a long-term blood glucose marker typically requiring a lab test. That system uses multi-wavelength light sensors and spectral analysis to derive estimated values over time. Huawei, by contrast, isn’t trying to quantify anything directly. It’s spotting trends that might correlate with risk, not estimating specific blood sugar markers.
For now, Huawei’s feature avoids regulatory complications by focusing on general wellness. It may also sidestep the accuracy and reliability hurdles that come with trying to deliver clinical-grade data. But as sensor quality improves and algorithms mature, the line between wellness and diagnostic tech is becoming harder to draw.
via Gulfbusiness.com
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