ABU DHABI, 21st October, 2026 (WAM) -- The Department of Health – Abu Dhabi (DoH), the regulator of the healthcare sector in the emirate, and WHOOP, the human performance brand, today announced a strategic research collaboration to explore the role of continuous health insights and coaching in preventive health. The research supports Abu Dhabi’s shift from reacting to illness towards personalised prevention at scale.
In the presence of H.H. Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Chairman of the Presidential Court for Development and Fallen Heroes’ Affairs, Mansoor Ibrahim Al Mansoori, Chairman of the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi, and Will Ahmed, Founder and CEO of WHOOP, the MoU was signed at the Abu Dhabi Future Health Summit by Dr. Noura Khamis Al Ghaithi, Undersecretary of the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi and Jonathan Jeffrey, WHOOP’s Chief Corporate Affairs Officer and Chief of Staff to the CEO.
The collaboration will consist of a phased research programme on heart and metabolic health, exploring how wearable technology can help people better understand their bodies and take a more informed, proactive approach to their health.
WHOOP continuously senses an individual’s key health indicators such as sleep, recovery, strain, stress, and cardiovascular health, providing context beyond a single measurement. The first, foundational study of the 24-month programme aims to assess how this continuous data, alongside coaching from WHOOP, can affect key health markers like weight, waist circumference, heart rate, blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, and sleep over a six-month period for adults with obesity and high blood pressure. The study’s design and oversight will be supported by physicians in Abu Dhabi.
Subsequent studies will explore how WHOOP can help reduce risk factors for heart and metabolic disease by supporting the behavioural changes required alongside treatment. The programme will generate novel, real-world evidence on the role wearable technology can play in preventive and cardiometabolic health.
In line with Abu Dhabi's prevention-led health agenda, the collaboration brings the continuous health data of WHOOP into the emirate's intelligent health system to accelerate population health research and safely scale new models of care.
Mansoor Ibrahim Al Mansoori, Chairman of the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi said: “Our bodies can signal changes long before we feel unwell. The earlier we recognise those signals, the more we can do to protect our health. Abu Dhabi has built an intelligent health system that uses AI to turn complex health data into meaningful, personalised insights. Our partnership with WHOOP will explore how data from wearables can be translated into practical, personalised guidance, helping people better understand their health and make lasting changes.”
“This is a landmark partnership for WHOOP and Abu Dhabi,” said Will Ahmed, Founder and CEO of WHOOP. “We first began working in the UAE in 2016. Since then, hundreds of thousands of citizens and residents have come to trust WHOOP to support their health and performance goals. At WHOOP, we believe deeply in what continuous data insights and coaching can offer when applied to real health challenges. Abu Dhabi puts data at the heart of how it cares for people, and I'm incredibly proud to work alongside them to explore what's possible, and even more excited about what we can accomplish together.”
Research will follow data governance guidelines over data minimisation, transparent data processing and secure storage, in line with applicable regulations and international best practices.