--- title: "Apple Quietly Working on AI Agent to “Replica” a Human Doctor" description: "Apple is working on an \"AI doctor service\" for its Health app that would use your health data to peddle medical advice." date: "2025-03-31" modified: "2025-03-31" authors: - name: "Frank Landymore" job_title: "Contributing Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/flandymore" url: "https://futurism.com/apple-ai-powered-doctor" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" tags: - "ai agents" - "apple" - "apple intelligence" - "medical ai" --- # Apple Quietly Working on AI Agent to “Replica” a Human Doctor ![Apple is working on an "AI doctor service" for its Health app that would use your health data to peddle medical advice.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* As it struggles to hit its stride in the generative AI race, Apple is quietly working on an "AI doctor service," [*Bloomberg* ]()[reports]() — a move that the company seemingly hopes will revitalize its foray into medical tech. The secret initiative — dubbed Project Mulberry and nicknamed "Health+" — aims to give a facelift to Apple's fairly basic Health app, along with integrating a "health coach." *Bloomberg* described the service as being powered "by a new AI agent that would replicate — at least to some extent — a real doctor." The use of the term "[AI agent]()" here is noteworthy, as it entails a higher degree of autonomy than a model described as an AI assistant. Using your Apple devices like an iPhone or Apple Watch, the idea is that the revamped Health app will collect all sorts of health metrics ranging from your heart-rate. Then, based on that data, the AI doctor will recommend ways to improve your health. Just how deep will these recommendations go? Per the report, the Health app will have a major emphasis on food tracking, something that the current app doesn't do. In some shape or form, the AI doctor is supposed to help users with those nutrition features, though it's unclear how. Ambitiously, Apple is also working on using your phone's camera so the AI agent can study your workout, giving you tips on your form. It's worth being skeptical about how these features will work in practice. Apple's stab at AI, [Apple Intelligence](), was largely seen as an [underwhelming flop](). The greatest concern is the tech's [proclivity for hallucinating](), something that Apple caught flak for when its AI constantly [butchered summaries of news headlines](), leading the company to suspend the feature. These misinformation risks won't go away with deploying an "AI doctor." If anything, the stakes will be higher. To that end, Apple is trying to assemble a medical A-team, including experts in sleep, nutrition, physical therapy, mental health, and cardiology, per *Bloomberg,* to create explainer videos that the AI doctor would refer patients to. If your data shows poor heart rate trends, for example, then the AI would show you a video made by one of these doctors about the risk of heart disease. Apple is also searching for a "major doctor personality" to serve as the face of the service. As it stands, the project is the top priority for Apple's entire health division, and is being led by Sumbul Desai, a Stanford doctor who serves as the company's VP of health. A release is due as early as iOS 19.4, according to the report, a software update that's anticipated to rollout next spring or summer. **More on AI:** *[AI's "Biggest Test" Is Turning Into a Catastrophe as CoreWeave Flounders]()* ## Author At Futurism, my work has often centered on bringing a sense of clarity and insight to complex topics ranging from the regulation of emerging technologies to the esoteric ideologies of Silicon Valley executives, while striving not to lose the poetic sense of awe inspired by often-obscure fields like astrophysics and quantum computing. I broke the story of CNET using AI to produce articles that turned out to be riddled with factual errors and plagiarism — a dam-breaking inflection point, as I've reported, that's inspired copycats and endless discourse while beguiling stakeholders ranging from tech giants to purveyors of spam around the web. My work at Futurism has been cited by publications including CBS News, the Los Angeles Times, Vice, Gizmodo, Engadget, the Verge, and Vanity Fair. I grew up in locales ranging from India to China, and now live in the exotic suburbs of Virginia. In my free time, I'm an avid reader of weird sci-fi literature, an aficionado of East Asian cinema, and, regrettably, a relapsed gamer. Allegedly, I’m working on a debut novel, currently untitled. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()