Google introduced the Pixel Watch 5 with a new Breathing Emergency Detection feature that uses on‑device AI to detect a persistent drop in oxygen saturation and can place an emergency call and share location, and the company said the capability will begin in select markets in the European Union and is not launching in the U.S. pending regulatory clearance Breathing Emergency Detection persistent drop in oxygen saturation select markets in the European Union.
Google positioned the feature as part of a new Health Guardian umbrella that groups safety tools such as Loss of Pulse Detection and irregular‑rhythm alerts, and said the breathing detector is aimed at acute crises like drug toxicity, accidents, severe pneumonia and choking while being rolled out to Pixel Watch 4 owners as well as Pixel Watch 5 users Health Guardian Loss of Pulse Detection Pixel Watch 4.
“We've designed an AI‑based algorithm running on device to detect a persistent drop in oxygen saturation,” Francis Hoe, a Pixel Watch product manager, said persistent drop in oxygen saturation.
Google says the detection combines photoplethysmography (PPG), accelerometer and barometer inputs with on‑device models to spot a sustained SpO₂ decline and reduce false alarms, and the company contrasted its monitoring features with recent hypertension and blood‑pressure efforts from Apple and Samsung PPG, accelerometer, and barometer hypertension notifications.
Google said it is working with regulators to expand availability and will add related blood‑pressure and insulin‑resistance trend monitoring to the Google Health app later this fall blood pressure and insulin resistance trends.
