Google’s aiming to be your personal concierge for all things health and fitness. The company has started rolling out a major refresh of the Fitbit app, complete with a modern redesign and a new built-in personal trainer, aka Coach, powered by Google’s Gemini AI — just not to everyone yet. Starting Oct. 28, the new experience will be available to eligible Fitbit Premium users in the US on Android, with a wider release planned over time.
As the race to build smarter, more personalized health platforms intensifies, Google is leaning on its full ecosystem of hardware, software and AI assistant to set Fitbit apart. With the wrist as the centerpoint of the data (via Pixel Watch and Fitbit trackers), Google is aiming to evolve its platform from a passive fitness tracker into a proactive, AI-driven wellness companion.
What to expect
While I haven’t yet tested the preview version myself, Google’s demo suggests a cleaner, more intuitive layout built around four main tabs: Today, Fitness, Sleep and Health.
The Today tab, which is what you’ll consult most frequently, highlights glanceable stats with a stronger focus on weekly trends. Google says these are a truer reflection of progress compared to the usual day-to-day insights that other trackers emphasize. The other tabs let you dig deeper into detailed metrics across categories like sleep stages and vitals. And this time, the burden of interpreting the data won’t just fall solely on the user.
Woven throughout the app is a new Coach feature, that you can access through an «Ask Coach» prompt. Coach draws on real-time and historical data to help make sense of your metrics and even turn them into a personal action plan. Google describes it as an «always-on» coach that can respond to questions or proactively adjust your plan based on recent activity, readiness, or even life events like travel or missed workouts.
For example, you might ask, «I have 30 minutes for a workout… What do you recommend?» or «How can I improve my VO2 max?» Or even draw links to your own stats with prompts like, «Do I sleep better on days when I get more steps in?»
During the (optional) onboarding process, you can set goals, log available fitness equipment and note injuries or limitations. The preview begins with a short 5-10 minute conversation (either by text or voice) to help the AI understand your goals and motivations. From there, the plan dynamically adjusts based on changing metrics like training load, readiness score and overnight recovery data, keeping everything aligned with your long-term goals.
Participation in the coaching experience is opt-in, so you can still use Fitbit without the AI features if you prefer.
Availability and pricing
The update launches first to people in the US, aged 18 and older, who subscribe to Fitbit Premium (priced at $10 a month or $80 a year) and own a compatible Fitbit or Pixel Watch. It will work with the latest Fitbit trackers, smartwatches and Pixel Watch models. During the preview phase, you can toggle between the old and new app designs without losing data, allowing for side-by-side comparison and feedback collection.
Google says user input from this period will be key to shaping the end result of the app experience and will have an integrated feedback tool for testers. While the company hasn’t confirmed a firm end date for the preview, it says the experience will expand to more users and devices over time.
The real test
This redesign and Coach feature show serious potential. If it delivers on Google’s promises of bringing professional-grade coaching to mainstream users, it could mark a turning point for wellness tech and could position Google at the front of the pack. The company says the coach experience was developed with input from health experts and a consumer advisory panel, and that user data will not be used for Google Ads.
But as with everything in the AI world, execution will be everything, and the value of a wellness coach must be compelling enough — and accurate enough — to overcome the hesitation of entrusting yet another AI feature with sensitive health data. But the real test lies in how well Google manages privacy, data security and real-world usefulness. That balance could mean the difference between just a repackaged Gemini that most people turn off, and a game-changing tool that translates your data into action.
For now, it’s a promising preview, but one I’ll be testing firsthand once it rolls out.
