Crash Detection

Apple, Inc. introduced Crash Detection on the Apple Watch Series 8, Ultra, and second-generation SE and the iPhone 14 series at an event on September 7, 2022. This came three years later than Google, who had introduced the Car Crash Detection feature on its Pixel 3 smartphone in 2019.{{Cite web |last=Schoon |first=Ben |date=October 4, 2023 |title=Google Pixel phones feature Car Crash Detection like iPhone 14 and Apple Watch; how to turn it on |url=https://9to5google.com/2022/09/07/google-pixel-car-crash-detection/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220907230245/https://9to5google.com/2022/09/07/google-pixel-car-crash-detection/ |archive-date=September 7, 2022 |access-date=October 8, 2023 |website=9to5Google}} The company credits the watch's enhanced gyroscope and accelerometer for making the feature possible, and it also uses data from the watch's barometer, satellite navigation, and microphone features to detect a crash.{{cite press release |title=Apple reveals Apple Watch Series 8 and the new Apple Watch SE |url=https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2022/09/apple-reveals-apple-watch-series-8-and-the-new-apple-watch-se/ |access-date=February 3, 2023 |work=Apple Newsroom |date=September 7, 2022}}{{cite news |last1=Ortiz |first1=Sabrina |title=Apple announces a new life-saving feature -- Crash Detection |url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/apple-announces-a-brand-new-life-saving-feature-crash-detection/ |access-date=February 3, 2023 |work=ZDNet |date=September 7, 2022 |language=en}} The feature was inspired by past success with Apple's Fall Detection and atrial fibrillation (AFib) detection in the Apple Watch, two executives told TechCrunch, noting that Crash Detection uses multiple inputs to avoid falsely triggering when, for example, an owner accidentally drops their device.{{cite news |last1=Heater |first1=Brian |title=Apple offers a deeper dive into crash detection |url=https://techcrunch.com/2022/10/10/apple-offers-a-deeper-dive-into-crash-detection/?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAALYzv0EhS6KnMAY8B-rPxKo3VorijVyWD2tGPyKqWFVei5zEoLb6XowGmqXSnHQNh3JNwcUAhHcxZ3icegzlDl315JHfXEqsS-iOpF9e5w-7o1DjgXD3XgKCSe5Rm2IC2klK-EjZCKCb3AX4LFPjM1-GT54iT2SgxcAru11nwzJQ |access-date=February 3, 2023 |work=TechCrunch |date=October 10, 2022}} In a later interview, Apple head of software Craig Federighi said he was "amazed [by] how many letters we got, within days [of Crash Detection's release], from people who had been in car crashes", some of whom said it saved their lives.{{cite magazine |last1=Grothaus |first1=Michael |title=Exclusive: Apple software chief Craig Federighi on iOS 17's new privacy features, why he's afraid of AI, and why he's not |url=https://www.fastcompany.com/90904197/apple-ios-17-craig-federighi-privacy-check-in-lockdown-mode-safari |magazine=Fast Company |access-date=6 June 2023}}

In October 2022, a man credited Crash Detection for saving his life by automatically calling emergency services after his tire blew out while he was driving {{convert|70|mph|kph}} and he crashed into a telephone pole. In a post on Reddit, the crash victim thanked Tim Cook and Apple for having developed the feature.{{cite news |last1=Gibbs |first1=Alice |title=Man in 'life or death' 70mph car crash credits Apple Watch for saving him |url=https://www.newsweek.com/man-saved-car-crash-apple-watch-indiana-1752326 |access-date=February 3, 2023 |work=Newsweek |date=October 18, 2022 |language=en}} Cook responded hours later, wishing the crash victim well and explaining that the feature was built for incidents like this.{{cite news |last1=Siegal |first1=Jacob |title=Man says Apple Watch saved his life in brutal car crash, and photos show the aftermath |url=https://bgr.com/tech/man-says-apple-watch-saved-his-life-in-brutal-car-crash-and-photos-show-the-aftermath/ |access-date=February 3, 2023 |work=BGR |date=October 19, 2022}}

In December 2022, a driver and passenger were saved after their car fell {{convert|300|ft|m}} off the Angeles Crest Highway. Their iPhone 14 automatically detected the crash and called emergency services. The two were not seriously injured and were evacuated by helicopter to Huntington Hospital in Pasadena, California, before being released.{{cite news |last1=Melnick |first1=Kyle |title=A couple's car fell 300 feet. A new iPhone feature aided their rescue. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/12/20/iphone-crash-detection-couple-saved/ |access-date=February 3, 2023 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=December 20, 2022}}

After a crash in Rowella, Tasmania in January 2023, one passenger’s iPhone 14 automatically notified authorities, who were on the scene within 8 minutes. A Ford Ranger pickup truck towing a horse trailer crashed into a tree stump. Five people were injured in the crash and four horses were killed.{{Cite news |date=2023-01-29 |title=Five people injured, four horses dead as phone's crash detection brings authorities to scene in eight minutes |language=en-AU |work=ABC News |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-30/people-injured-four-horses-dead-after-crash-in-northern-tasmania/101905420 |access-date=2023-02-03}}

In August 2023, 3 suspect teens were found by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office when their car crashed on Lake Hatchineha Road (County Road 542) in Poinciana, Florida. The Polk County deputies and fire rescue crews were responding to a single-vehicle crash from one of the occupants' iPhone.{{cite web | url=https://www.wfla.com/news/polk-county/iphone-crash-detection-helps-polk-deputies-find-3-teens-injured-in-stolen-car-wreck/ | title=IPhone crash detection helps Polk deputies find 3 teens injured in stolen car wreck | date=31 August 2023 }}{{cite web | url=https://www.fox13news.com/news/polk-county-theft-crash-poinciana-florida-sheriffs-office | title=3 teens injured after crashing stolen vehicle in Polk County: Deputies | date=September 2023 }}

Crash Detection has triggered during roller coaster rides because devices have mistaken the rides' sudden stops for car crashes.{{Cite web |date=2022-10-10 |title=iPhone 14's Car Crash Detection Feature is Calling 911 About Roller Coaster Rides |url=https://gizmodo.com/iphone-14-roller-coaster-car-crash-detection-turn-off-1849639868 |access-date=2022-10-12 |website=Gizmodo |language=en}}{{Cite news |last=Stern |first=Joanna |date=2022-10-09 |title='The Owner of This iPhone Was in a Severe Car Crash'—or Just on a Roller Coaster |language=en-US |work=Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-owner-of-this-iphone-was-in-a-severe-car-crashor-just-on-a-roller-coaster-11665314944 |access-date=2022-10-12 |issn=0099-9660}}

In Minnesota in early 2023, emergency responders in multiple counties reported receiving calls triggered by Crash Detection where no emergency existed, including several from snowmobile riders. A reporter noted that although the iPhone makes a noise before calling authorities, that noise might not be audible through winter clothing or over the sound of a snowmobile engine.{{cite news |last1=Kraker |first1=Dan |title=Apple devices trigger false calls for winter rescues in Minnesota |url=https://www.mprnews.org/story/2023/01/09/concern-over-false-alarms-as-snowmobilers-skiers-trigger-accidental-911-calls |access-date=February 3, 2023 |work=MPR News |date=January 9, 2023 |language=en}}

Emergency dispatchers have received many false alarm calls from iPhone 14 and Apple Watch users who have been skiing safely. In Colorado, a wave of false 9-1-1 calls led Aspen Mountain to advise device owners to upgrade their operating systems or disable the feature.{{cite news |last1=Richtel |first1=Matt |title='My Watch Thinks I'm Dead' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/03/health/apple-watch-911-emergency-call.html |access-date=February 3, 2023 |work=The New York Times |date=February 3, 2023}} In Japan's Hida Mountains, emergency dispatchers reported 134 false emergency calls, more than 14% of the total emergency call volume, between December 16, 2022 and January 23, 2023, attributed to Crash Detection triggering while iPhone 14 owners were skiing.{{cite news |title=Japan Skiers' Smartphones Making Unnecessary Emergency Calls |url=https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/society/general-news/20230129-87465/ |access-date=February 3, 2023 |work=The Japan News |publisher=The Yomiuri Shimbun |date=January 29, 2023 |language=en}}

In addressing the occurrence of false positives, iOS underwent six optimizations to Crash Detection, while in contrast, watchOS received only 1. The most recent iteration of iOS Crash Detection was introduced in iOS 17.3,{{Cite web |date=2024-01-22 |title=About iOS 17 Updates |url=https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213781#173 |access-date=2024-02-07 |website=Apple Support |language=en}} while the watchOS counterpart received its latest Crash Detection optimization featured within the framework of watchOS 9.2.{{Cite web |date=2023-10-25 |title=About watchOS 9 Updates |url=https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213436#92 |access-date=2023-10-26 |website=Apple Support |language=en}}

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Category:iOS software

Category:watchOS software

Category:Emergency communication