Making Daily Headlines · Page 6
Smart insoles promise an AI running coach
· New York time
A company is linking sensor-equipped insoles to an AI coach in a runner's ear, saying the system could help avid runners avoid injury. CBS News describes an approach designed to provide feedback based on how someone runs with each step, rather than relying only on a conventional virtual coaching app. The injury benefit is the company's promise, not an established result in the reporting. The concrete development is the combination of in-shoe sensors and spoken AI guidance. It adds another source of information to an activity that previously allowed people to leave a substantial portion of their technology at home. The attraction is individualized feedback. The comic complication is individualized supervision: the shoes have acquired management, and management has located an earbud. A jog that once offered a break from performance reviews can now come with its own running commentary. More granular information could make the experience useful to some runners, but usefulness and injury prevention are separate questions. The product's appeal will depend on whether its guidance earns a place in the routine. At minimum, the familiar instruction to listen to your body now faces competition from a device that would also like to be heard.
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