The situation generated enough fan concern that Samsung issued a formal statement to address the matter:
“We would like to inform you about the Consent to the use of health data for AI training and modeling, which is newly being collected through the update in July 2026. Samsung Health operates a separate consent process for health information used for AI development purposes to ensure that customers’ health information is managed more safely and transparently. This consent is optional and is provided based on each customer’s choice. You may also withdraw your consent at any time after providing it.”
Mike Sawh
The statement further explains, “if you withdraw your consent, data that has been separately collected and used for AI development purposes will be deleted and will no longer be used for AI development purposes. However, existing health data stored for the use of Samsung Health services will not be deleted and will not be affected by your use of the service.”
With the rapid growth of the AI industry, which has significantly influenced the smartphone market with technologies like Gemini, Galaxy AI, and Siri AI, artificial intelligence is becoming more integrated into the fitness tracking sector.
The recently launched Fitbit Air focuses on interacting with the AI-powered Google Health Coach to better interpret health data and provide actionable insights.
Samsung’s effort to explore additional methods for training its AI models is understandable, especially as the unveiling of the new Galaxy Watch 9 and Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is anticipated at the Samsung Unpacked event on 22 July.
