The next big interface
is in your hands

There was a time when touching your face during a Zoom call was frowned upon. Now it’s your wrist that’s under scrutiny: not for idle gestures, but for commands that trigger photos, silence alarms, answer calls, and reject them with a dismissive flick.

The idea that gestures might replace swipes, buttons, and voice is now strapped to the wrist. And it’s sending a signal that the next big interface may not be a screen at all.

This was the message from Huawei at the launch of a new range of wearable devices in Berlin last week. The buzz was palpable in the wake of the International Data Corporation reporting that Huawei has posted the highest year-over-year increase in shipments in the wearables sector for 2024 – and had now led the Chinese market for six years.

In Berlin, it claimed technology leadership too, declaring in effect that smartwatches were evolving from notification machines into gesture-driven command centres.

The company’s latest flagship, the Huawei Watch 5, introduces more than a refined design and new health sensors. It is a full-blown attempt at reimagining how we interact with technology.

The new system is built on what Huawei calls “multi-sensing X-tap technology”, combined with a dedicated neural processing unit and advanced on-device algorithms. That’s a mouthful, but the outcome is simple: your wrist understands you. This is like generative AI for gestures. It can detect muscle activity and distinguish between deliberate hand gestures. Double-tap your thumb and index finger? The watch gets it. Slide your thumb along your index finger? It gets that too. And it responds.

“The Huawei Watch 5 can now detect subtle muscle movements and recognise different gestures,” said Huawei head of product Andreas Zimmer, unveiling the device. “Using two fingers, you can easily control the watch: tap two times to confirm a selection, capture photos, answer calls. All with just a double tap.

“Quickly slide your thumb twice from the index finger joint to the fingertip to scroll through options. When your phone is out of reach, slide twice to select the hang up function, and then double tap to reject the call. In a rush, here’s your power move: just double slide, then tap. Two intuitive gestures from sleepy to switched-on in half a second”.

As gestures go, these are more Harry Potter than TikTok dance: precise and discreet.

Gesture control may seem like a modest innovation compared to the promise of AI assistants or holographic displays. It’s also not entirely new. We’ve seen gestures come and go before — especially on smartphones, where “hover to preview” and “wave to scroll” made fleeting appearances nearly a decade ago. Touching screens turned out to be far more precise.

But wrist-based gestures are a different story. They don’t compete with touch but replace it when touch is awkward: like jogging, gloved, holding a bag, in a meeting, or in bed wanting just 10 more minutes of sleep without swiping at a screen. And unlike voice assistants, they work in silence and in noise.

“The full potential of X-tap is open to partners worldwide,” Zimmer said, subtly announcing a post-Google Android world. “Together we’ll unlock limitless possibilities.”

The Fit 4 Pro smartwatch, also unveiled in Berlin, didn’t lean as heavily on gestures but reinforced the same idea from another angle: that the watch is no longer a satellite to one’s phone, but is becoming its own ecosystem.

“The Fit 4 Pro supports everything from diving to trail running, and it’s so slim you forget you’re wearing it,” said Huawei product specialist Farangis Sultonzoda. “But it’s not just about tracking. It’s about giving people real feedback, in real time, with real movement”.

The real question is whether people will use it. Smartwatches already have more functions than most people use.

Will gestures become second nature, or remain an occasional party trick?

Huawei is betting on the former. To its credit, the company has done more than just slap on a sensor. The gesture system is tightly integrated, context-aware and responsive. The real barrier may be the user, not the tech. Touchscreens were clumsy until they weren’t. Voice assistants were awkward until they weren’t. Gestures are next in line.

* Arthur Goldstuck is CEO of World Wide Worx and author of ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to AI’. Follow him on Bluesky on @art2gee.bsky. social.