This week in Las Vegas at CES 2026, tech companies are unveiling the latest wearable health devices: glucose monitors, blood pressure monitors, fitness trackers. Probably not During the show, it was mentioned that these gadgets could cause a huge environmental problem.
It’s not something that gets a lot of attention, but a new study from Cornell University and the University of Chicago found that by 2050, demand for health wearables could reach 2 billion units per year, or 42 times more than today. Unless we change how they are made, these devices could generate well over a million tons of electronic waste and 100 million tons of carbon dioxide in the same period, the authors warn.
An even bigger surprise is that it’s not the plastic that’s the problem. The study, published in Nature, found that the circuit board – the ‘brain’ of the device – is responsible for 70% of its carbon footprint, largely due to intensive mining and manufacturing.
The researchers propose two solutions: develop chips with common metals such as copper instead of rare minerals such as gold, and make devices modular so that the circuit board can be reused while the outer layer is replaced.
One of the study’s co-authors wrote: “When these devices are deployed on a global scale, small design choices quickly add up.” It’s something to think about as you scroll through CES announcements.
#Wearable #health #devices #generate #million #tons #electronic #waste #TechCrunch