Engineers at Rutgers University have created a pair of sneakers that generate power from your footsteps and utilize artificial intelligence to assess your gait. A triboelectric generator embedded in the shoe's sole generates electricity with each step, sufficient to operate the sensors and a microcontroller that runs an AI algorithm. Simiao Niu, the lead researcher who previously contributed to the ECG sensor for the Apple Watch, understands the challenges of charging wearables. "Typically, once you place it on the charger, you forget about it, and as a result, you don't wear it. Those devices are ineffective for health monitoring if they remain unused in a drawer," Niu explains. As you walk, the AI tracks your steps, identifies your movement type—whether walking slowly or quickly, running, or climbing stairs—with an impressive accuracy of 95.4%, and calculates the calories burned. The results are displayed on a compact screen. Would you consider wearing sneakers like these?
Informational material. 18+.
