Qualcomm survey unsurprisingly finds people want AI agents on their wearables

Artificial intelligence is everywhere, and while it’s most obvious on the smartphones we use every day, wearables with built-in AI are catching up quickly. In fact, Qualcomm thinks wearables will see the highest AI adoption among users in the coming years. However, as AI makes its way onto nearly every device we own, it also raises major privacy concerns.

Qualcomm recently shared interesting results from a survey of more than 12,000 wearable users and potential buyers across six markets. According to the survey, nearly 60% of wearable owners use AI weekly. That number jumps to 70% for smart glasses owners.

More importantly, user interest is strongest in what comes next. Around 70% of surveyed users want a personalized AI agent they can speak to that can manage their devices, apps, and everyday tasks. Roughly 65% to 70% showed interest in wearables that can work together through a single AI agent. Furthermore, nearly half also showed interest in an AI that can learn their routines and take proactive action.

The survey also reveals that consumers increasingly view wearables as intelligent devices that can help them navigate the world, rather than simple accessories. It also suggests people are more interested than ever in a wearable ecosystem that works together seamlessly.

At the same time, around 60% of surveyed wearable owners want their data to stay private or want to approve it before it’s shared. That presents an awkward problem: the more an AI agent needs to ask for permission, the less proactive it can be. It suggests that companies need to strike a balance between offering more choice and automating more capabilities.

We can already see brands taking sides on this exact issue. For example, Meta’s Muse AI asks for approval before it sends messages or spends money. Users can also choose to allow it to send messages or spend money without approval. But Meta also wants users to give Muse access to their bank accounts, and its privacy track record isn’t great.

Perplexity’s Hybrid Compute takes a different approach to agentic AI: it keeps personal data on the user’s device and can send other data to the cloud if needed. Meanwhile, health companies such as Ultrahuman simply ask users to opt in to sharing their health data.

Qualcomm makes chips for wearable devices, so it’s not surprising that it sees AI on wearables as the next big thing. The company’s blog post adds that Qualcomm’s processors offer strong on-device AI capabilities and can meet nearly every demand raised by users in its survey. Whether AI agents on wearables actually become more useful beyond just sending messages and helping with translation remains to be seen.