Google has rolled out a major safety upgrade for Wear OS smartwatches, enabling earthquake alerts to be delivered directly to users’ wrists, even when their watch isn’t connected to a smartphone.

Until now, earthquake alerts on Wear OS devices simply mirrored notifications received on a paired Android phone. If the phone wasn’t nearby or connected, the watch wouldn’t receive the warning.

That dependency has now been removed.

The update effectively turns compatible Wear OS smartwatches, such as Google’s Pixel Watch range and Samsung Galaxy Watch models, into more independent safety devices.

For users who leave their phones behind while exercising, commuting, or moving around the workplace, the change could prove useful.

Google’s Earthquake Alerts System uses crowdsourced data from millions of Android devices.

When a phone’s accelerometer detects vibrations consistent with seismic activity, it sends anonymised location and motion data to Google’s servers.

If multiple devices in the same area report similar tremors, Google estimates the quake’s magnitude and epicentre before issuing alerts to nearby users – often seconds before strong shaking begins.

On smartphones, two alert levels exist: a ‘Be Aware’ notification for lighter shaking and a more urgent ‘Take Action’ alert that overrides Do Not Disturb settings, sounds a loud alarm, and displays safety instructions. Wear OS alerts are expected to follow a similar model.

Google has not clarified whether standalone alerts will require a cellular-enabled smartwatch or if Wi-Fi connectivity will suffice.

It is also unclear whether Wear OS devices will eventually contribute their own sensor data to the broader earthquake detection network.