Smartwatcher launches its personal safety app

Apple Watches are selling very well, and it’s likely they’ll be appearing under many Christmas trees this year. But a lot of people are unconvinced as to why one of these new-fangled watches would actually be useful. One genuine use is personal safety: a smartwatch has the perfect form factor since it’s always there on your wrist and is quickly reachable.

This is where Smartwatcher comes in. The app enables users to call for help by pressing a button on their watch.

Someone experiencing a medical emergency such as a heart-attack usually does not have the presence of mind to make a phone call, or even be physically able to do so. However the same person could probably manage to press their watch. In the case of domestic violence, or teenage bullying, the SmartWatcher solution has another advantage - discretion. Triggering an alert can be done without anyone noticing.

But the system is more than a sophisticated panic button. Smartwatcher Technologies has developed Continuous Safety Monitoring. Once activated, the app periodically asks the user to confirm that he or she is safe. In case they do not confirm their safety, the members of their safety network will automatically be alerted.

“The beauty of our solution is you don’t need special hardware - just an app for your smartwatch or phone” says CEO Morgan Cohen, a Dubliner who founded the Zurich-based company. Cohen studied computer science in Dublin before moving to Silicon Valley to join his first startup, and now lives in Switzerland with his family.

SmartWatcher is already available in app stores (App Store, Google Play) and the main capabilities are free of charge. Those wishing to avail of advanced features like Continuous Safety Monitoring pay a small fee via an in-app purchase.

About Smartwatcher Technologies
Smartwatcher Technologies has developed a novel social network for personal safety, which complements existing national emergency services. The patent-pending technology of the Swiss start-up leverages the smartwatch (such as Apple Watch) as the ideal personal safety device. The result is a personal safety service that is disruptively convenient, powerful and inexpensive.

(SK)