In brief
Apple and the Singapore government are launching LumiHealth, an iPhone app arriving on the App Store in October. Residents who use it with an Apple Watch can earn one-time rewards of up to S$380 (about US$280) for healthy activities, and it will remind them to get a Covid-19 vaccine once one is available. Singapore is the first country to run such a programme with Apple Watch.
CNBC reported on Tuesday (the 15th) that Apple (AAPL-US) has announced a partnership with the Singapore government to launch an iPhone app called LumiHealth, which encourages people in Singapore to maintain their physical and mental well-being through the Apple Watch smartwatch. Once a vaccine becomes available, the app will also remind users to get vaccinated against the novel coronavirus (Covid-19). Singapore is also the first country to partner with Apple Watch in this way.
LumiHealth will be available on Apple's App Store in October. After downloading the app and registering, Singapore residents can follow the app's prompts to take part in public health activities such as meditation, walking, swimming, improving sleep quality and participating in pandemic prevention, and can earn a one-time reward of up to S$380, equivalent to about US$280 USD.
Users can also sign up through the app for health challenges and interactive games tailored by doctors and fitness coaches. LumiHealth customizes personal prompts, training plans and reward structures according to individual gender, age, weight and other factors, so ordinary people need not worry about having to compete against elite athletes.
Singapore is the first country to launch this kind of health programme in partnership with Apple Watch. Although Apple has already launched health tracking programmes in the United States with private life insurers such as Aetna, it has not yet partnered with any US government agency on such an initiative.
This is not the first time the Singapore government has invested effort in health programmes, since in theory such programmes can save more on medical costs. In August 2019, the smartwatch maker Fitbit teamed up with the Singapore government to launch a health service subscription that provided a free watch, with users only needing to pay a monthly subscription fee of US$10 USD.
At the time, the Singapore government hinted that it was working with "other technology innovators."
Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat said in a statement: "Singapore's partnership with Apple will make our people healthier. While tackling the pandemic is very important, we must also keep investing in our future, and there is nothing better to invest in than personal health."
Myoung Cha, the Apple Health executive leading the programme, believes that Apple's collaboration with the Singapore government to develop LumiHealth is highly valuable. He told CNBC: "We aim to encourage citizens to build healthy lifestyle habits through co-design, gamification and the power of the Apple Watch."