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Can devices like the iPhone, AirPods, or Apple Watch improve our health? Apple is eager to explore this question. In a recent blog post, the company noted, “In medical research, discoveries are often limited by the number of participants who can be recruited, the amount of data that can be captured, and the duration of a given study. But Apple devices expand the possibilities…” This new longitudinal virtual study aims to investigate how data from technology—both Apple and third-party devices—can help predict, detect, monitor, and manage health changes in participants. Furthermore, researchers will examine connections across various health domains.

According to CNBC, this study could significantly influence future product development. Apple CEO Tim Cook has previously stated that he believes health features will be the company’s “most important contribution to mankind.” The Apple Health Study will be accessible through the company’s Research app, and participation is entirely voluntary. Users will have the option to choose which types of data they are comfortable sharing with researchers, and they can withdraw their participation or stop sharing data at any time. Apple assures that it will not have access to participants’ identifiable information. The project is set to last at least five years, with potential for extension. A Harvard Medical School professor and cardiologist, who is a principal investigator on the Apple Health Study, remarked, “We’ve only just begun to scratch the surface of how technology can improve our understanding of human health.”