The Wearable Tech Podcast with Fexingo: Smartwatches, Fitness Trackers, and Health Devices

Episode 29 of The Wearable Tech Podcast explores a surprising frontier: wearable brain stimulation for depression. Lucas and Luna examine a specific case — the Flow Neuroscience headset, a FDA-cleared device that uses transcranial direct current stimulation to treat major depressive disorder. They discuss the clinical trial data, how the device works (a forehead electrode and an ear clip, worn for...

Lucas and Luna explore the quiet revolution in wearable hearing technology. They trace how traditional hearing aids — bulky, stigmatized, and expensive — are being reinvented by consumer tech companies like Apple and Jabra. The hosts zero in on the recent FDA rule change that created a new over-the-counter hearing aid category, and examine what it means for the 30 million Americans with mild-to-mo...

Episode 27 of The Wearable Tech Podcast explores a surprising gap: despite over 200 million smartwatches sold worldwide, daily active usage trails far behind smartphone engagement. Lucas and Luna examine data from Counterpoint Research and Deloitte showing that 30% of smartwatch owners stop wearing their device within six months. They discuss design friction, notification overload, and what compan...

Lucas and Luna examine how wearable insulin pumps have evolved from clunky medical devices to sleek, automated systems that communicate with continuous glucose monitors. They focus on Medtronic's latest MiniMed system, which uses a hybrid closed-loop algorithm to adjust insulin delivery every five minutes based on real-time glucose readings. The hosts discuss how this reduces the burden of constan...

In this episode of The Wearable Tech Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how wearable menstrual cycle trackers have moved beyond simple period prediction to become sophisticated health monitoring tools. They focus on the rise of continuous temperature sensing via wrist-worn devices like the Ava bracelet and the Tempdrop, and how companies like Natural Cycles and Clue are integrating this data with mac...

Lucas and Luna explore how continuous glucose monitors, or CGMs, are crossing over from diabetes management into the general wellness wearable market. They look at the specific case of Dexcom's Stelo sensor, cleared for over-the-counter use in 2024, and what it means for companies like Abbott and Apple. The episode digs into how CGMs work, why non-diabetics are wearing them, and whether the data a...

Lucas and Luna explore the emerging wearable tech category of posture trainers — devices that use haptic feedback to correct slouching in real time. They zero in on Upright, the Israeli startup that shipped over 700,000 units since 2018, and discuss how its latest model, the Upright Go S, uses AI to distinguish between a slouch and a deliberate lean. The episode covers the sensors involved (accele...

Episode 22 of The Wearable Tech Podcast explores a surprising new frontier in wearable health: vibration-based pain relief. Lucas and Luna examine Quell, a wearable neurostimulation device that uses high-frequency vibrations to block pain signals, and how it compares to TENS units and prescription treatments. They discuss the clinical data behind the Quell 2.0, its FDA clearance for fibromyalgia a...

Episode 21 of The Wearable Tech Podcast explores the journey of SpO2 sensors from hospital pulse oximeters to wrist-worn health tools. Lucas and Luna examine how Apple, Garmin, and Masimo turned a single-number metric into a multi-signal wellness indicator, covering the 2024 Masimo lawsuit outcome, the FDA's 2025 clearance of watch-based oxygen monitoring for COPD, and the latest research linking...

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the evolution of fall detection in wearables — from simple accelerometer-based alerts to the latest AI-driven systems that can predict falls before they happen. They examine a 2024 study from the Journal of Medical Internet Research showing that newer algorithms reduced false alarms by 62 percent in a six-month trial with 1,200 older adults. The hosts discus...

Episode 19 of The Wearable Tech Podcast explores the emerging field of sweat-based biosensors — wearable patches and smart textiles that analyze electrolytes, lactate, glucose, and hydration markers in real time. Lucas and Luna examine the science behind non-invasive sweat analysis, spotlighting startups like L'Oréal's UV Sense prototype, the University of California's sweat-sensing tattoo, and th...

Episode 18 of The Wearable Tech Podcast explores how stress sensors are moving beyond generic 'stressed or calm' labels to become personalized mental health tools. Lucas and Luna break down the shift from single-metric alerts to multi-sensor models that build individual baselines over days and weeks. They examine why early wearables failed to deliver useful stress data, how companies like Fitbit a...

Episode 17 of Wearable Tech Podcast with Fexingo dives into the rise of wearable hydration sensors. Lucas and Luna explore how Nix Biosensor's sweat patch, which measures sodium concentration and sweat rate in real time, is used by athletes from the Boston Marathon to NFL training camps. They discuss the science behind the sensor, the shift from subjective thirst ratings to data-driven fluid intak...

Lucas and Luna explore the rise of wearable UV sensors, from the first generation of clip-on devices like the SunSprite to the latest smartwatch integrations. They discuss the technology behind UV detection, how companies like L'Oréal and Apple are entering the space, and the public health implications of real-time sun exposure tracking. The episode also examines accuracy trade-offs, battery life...

Episode 15 of The Wearable Tech Podcast explores the emerging category of wearable blood pressure monitors. Lucas explains how optical sensors and calibration algorithms are allowing smartwatches and armbands to measure blood pressure without a traditional cuff — and why the FDA and medical establishment are watching closely. The hosts focus on the specific case of the Aktiia bracelet, a continuou...

Lucas and Luna dive into the data from a new study of 120,000 wearable users that reveals how sleep patterns vary by age, gender, and lifestyle. They discuss why the average sleep duration recorded by wearables is lower than self-reported surveys, how REM and deep sleep percentages shift over a lifetime, and what this means for the next generation of sleep-tracking algorithms. The hosts also explo...

Episode 13 of The Wearable Tech Podcast looks at the emerging category of personal air quality monitors—worn as clips, pendants, or armbands. Lucas and Luna discuss the science behind consumer-grade particulate matter sensors, why indoor air quality is suddenly a tech conversation, and how one startup, Flow, convinced office landlords to buy its devices in bulk. They break down the sensor types—la...

In this episode of The Wearable Tech Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how ECG sensors built into consumer smartwatches are moving beyond novelty to become genuine medical tools. They examine the story of a 58-year-old marathon runner whose Apple Watch detected atrial fibrillation during a training run, leading to a life-saving diagnosis. The hosts discuss the clinical validation studies behind thes...

Lucas and Luna dive into the most overlooked wearable sensor of 2026: the running power meter. While heart rate and GPS dominate headlines, direct stride sensors in shoes or pods measure mechanical load, efficiency, and fatigue in real time. Lucas breaks down how Stryd's power-based training approach has been adopted by the Nike Alphafly line and why Garmin is experimenting with running dynamics i...

Episode 10 of The Wearable Tech Podcast dives into the quiet revolution in skin temperature sensing on smartwatches, rings, and patches. Lucas and Luna explore how Apple, Oura, and startups like TempTraq are turning a once-obscure metric into early warning systems for illness, fertility tracking, and sleep quality. They break down the specific sensors—thermopiles and negative temperature coefficie...

Lucas and Luna examine Fitbit's decade-long arc from fitness tracker pioneer to smartwatch also-ran. They dig into the 2014 launch of the Charge HR, the 2017 Versa gamble, and how Google's $2.1 billion acquisition in 2021 reshaped the company's trajectory. The conversation explores what Fitbit did right — the step-count breakthrough, the social challenges feature — and where it stumbled, including...

WHOOP, the fitness wearable that tracks recovery, strain, and sleep, has built a business that is as much about the data subscription as it is about the hardware. In this episode, Lucas and Luna break down how WHOOP's $30-per-month model generates recurring revenue north of $200 million annually, why they turned down a $100 million acquisition offer from Nike in 2019, and how the company's focus o...

Episode 7 of The Wearable Tech Podcast dives into the pocket-sized revolution inside your wrist: the optical heart rate sensor. Lucas and Luna trace how Apple turned a modest health metric into the defining feature of the smartwatch, from the first Apple Watch in 2015 through the sensor's evolution into atrial fibrillation detection, VO2 max estimation, and overnight respiratory tracking. They foc...

In this episode of The Wearable Tech Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how Garmin quietly built a dominant position in the adventure wearable niche while Apple and Samsung fought over the mainstream smartwatch market. They trace Garmin's journey from GPS navigation to rugged fitness watches, unpacking specific models like the Fenix 7 and Instinct 2 that cater to hikers, trail runners, and ultra-endu...

Smart rings are the fastest-growing wearable category in 2026, and they're quietly changing how we think about health tracking. Lucas and Luna break down the numbers: the smart ring market is projected to hit $10 billion by 2030, growing at a compound annual growth rate of over 20 percent. They compare the Oura Ring and the Samsung Galaxy Ring, discussing design, accuracy, and battery life. They a...