This is how innovation enters the workplace to reduce musculoskeletal disorders linked to incorrect postures and repetitive gestures.

“Collaborating and supporting science, the two driving forces for better health.”

This is the appeal launched by the World Health Organization on the occasion of the World Health Day 2026, celebrated on April 7, the anniversary of the organization's founding in 1948. Two key events were launched in the days following the anniversary: ​​the International One Health Summit, promoted by the French government as part of the G7 presidency, and the first Global Forum of WHO Collaborating Centers, scheduled until April 9, which brings together around 800 scientific institutions from over 80 countries.

With the "Together for Health. Supporting Science" campaign, the WHO is launching a year of initiatives with an explicit focus on the value of scientific collaboration, international cooperation, and, above all, prevention. Precisely because health is increasingly connected to innovation, its scope today can no longer refrain from preempting the clinical dimension, including the ability (and willingness) to anticipate riskAnalysis tools capable of intervening even before the problem manifests, transforming prevention into a sort of planning exercise. And the workplace, where repetitive movements, incorrect postures, and loads impact the body, is one of the places where this dynamic is most evident and, consequently, where technologies developed from scientific models find direct application.

It is the case of Soter Analytics, which uses wearable sensors and AI to analyze workers' movements in real time, identifying risky patterns and providing immediate feedback. This processing allows for intervention before errors become health risks.

Prevention, research, and scientific collaboration: the pillars of a healthier future

The role of the same also contributes to giving concreteness to scientific progress prevention which, in all its forms, has produced measurable results on a global scale in recent decades. These include, for example, global immunization programs, which according to the WHO have saved over 154 million children over the past fifty years, with the measles vaccine alone responsible for more than 90 million lives saved.

Similarly, the spread of early screening tools—from electronic blood pressure monitors to mammography—has transformed diagnosis into a predictive tool, allowing intervention before diseases worsen. The same logic guided the response to health crises like SARS in 2003, when real-time data sharing between laboratories coordinated by the WHO enabled the virus to be identified within weeks, establishing a model that is still used today.

From the profound changes of the last century, the appeal to support science to be able to intercept in time an even healthier future, as underlined by the doctor Sylvie Briand, Chief Scientist of the World Health Organization:

Science transforms uncertainty into understanding and reveals ways to protect and heal our communities. Today, we must champion science so that our collaboration is sustained, strengthened, and enhanced for the better health of future generations.

From World Health Day 2026, the crucial importance of prevention also at work

Around the world, thousands of scientists, along with health organizations, are accelerating research, campaigns, and tools to protect today's communities and the health of future generations. And while this approach increasingly relies on prevention, one of its most widespread applications is a right that concerns everyone, every single day, and which, paradoxically, can become the source of many health problems: work.

It's no surprise that, according to the WHO, a significant portion of work-related illnesses are attributable to preventable factors, particularly musculoskeletal disorders caused by repetitive movements, poor posture, and heavy lifting. These conditions extend far beyond the workplace alone, with an estimated global impact of approximately 1,71 billions of people and represent the leading cause of disability, with back pain alone affecting more than 570 million casesA coincidence in which the collaboration between scientific research and technological development allows us to transform risk observation into concrete intervention.

Soter Analytics: Injury Interception Through AI and Wearable Devices

Soter Analytics, a company founded in 2016 by the Australian entrepreneur Matthew Hart together with the co-founder Alexey Pavlenko, was created with the aim of addressing one of the main critical issues in workplace safety: injuries related to incorrect posture and repetitive movements, which represent a significant portion of accidents in industrial settings.

Born from Hart's direct experience in the industrial sector, where costs and the frequency of accidents represent a structural problem, the company develops solutions that combine sensors, data analysis e machine learning models to identify risky behaviors before they result in harm.

The underlying idea is, clearly, to shift the focus from managing the injury to its anticipation, transforming prevention into a continuous and measurable process. Today Soter Analytics, based in London, operates internationally and works with around 90 companies, developing technologies to improve safety in the workplace and significantly reduce risky behaviors.

A direct application to prevent musculoskeletal disorders of the human body

Among the systems developed by Soter Analytics to directly address one of the main risk factors in the workplace, as well as repetitive movements and incorrect postures that over time lead to musculoskeletal disorders, there is SoterCoach, which intervenes in real time on worker behavior, transforming prevention into an active process.

At the base there is a lightweight wearable deviceDesigned for use during shifts, it analyzes body movements and recognizes up to 10 types of risky gestures, particularly those related to the back and shoulders. When it detects poor posture, the system sends immediate feedback via vibration or an acoustic signal, allowing for instant correction.

The device operates autonomously, with a battery life of more than 30 days. This is supported by a personalized coaching program, built on the data collected and generally structured over a cycle of about 20 days. Through short, targeted content accessible via the app, the worker is guided through a progressive learning path which aims to change habits over time.

The data then flows into a dashboard that allows companies to analyze behaviors, identify the most critical areas, and also intervene in work organization. The reported results demonstrate the system's impact: on average, risky movements are reduced by between 30 percent and 70 percent, while in some cases, ergonomic injuries drop by up to 55 percent, a sign of an approach that acts before damage occurs.

Prevention also means analyzing the work environment, not just behavior.

Different but still interesting is the platform SoterGenius, designed to address another critical issue in workplace safety: regulatory compliance, which is often complex, fragmented, and difficult to manage on a large scale. Unlike SoterCoach, which, as mentioned, targets individual behavior, the focus here shifts to processes and compliance. The system uses artificial intelligence to analyze images, videos, and documents, automating checks against safety standards.

In concrete terms, companies can upload photos or videos of their work environments and obtain them in just a few seconds. a detailed analysis of the critical issues, such as inadequate protective devices or non-compliant installations. The system was launched in 2024 and is based on datasets that include over 20 million data points from more than 10.000 companies, strengthening its ability to recognize large-scale risk patterns.

The main advantage, even in this case, always remains the timeWhile a manual inspection can take one to two hours, SoterGenius can identify risks and violations in seconds, also indicating which regulation is being broken, the potential cost of the fine, and the corrective actions to be taken.

Between high performance and delicate adaptation to the operational contexts of companies

SoterGenius's claimed performance is high: in tests, the system achieved 99 percent accuracy in image and video analysis and can review a 15.000-word safety manual in about 25 seconds, compared to the 75 minutes required by a human operator. The goal is make audits faster and more scalable, allowing even those without specialist skills to conduct effective and continuous audits.

The system is designed to be applicable in international contexts, adapting to different regulations through the analysis of documents and standards uploaded by companies, although coverage depends on the availability and quality of the regulations integrated into individual operating contexts.

From response to anticipation: the true future of workplace safety

Looking at the most recent developments, Soter is progressively shifting its approach towards artificial intelligence platforms capable of unifying and interpreting heterogeneous data in real time. At the core is what the company defines as a "risk intelligence layer“, a system that combines behavioral information, operational data, and environmental context to identify where risk is increasing, even in the absence of any previous incidents.

The goal is to overcome the information fragmentation typical of traditional security systems, transforming isolated signals into clear operational indications, integrated directly into corporate workflows. This way, alerts can automatically trigger contextually appropriate corrective actions and procedures.

A central element is the predictive capacityThe system analyzes patterns and scenarios to identify early warnings of potential incidents, including the most serious ones, providing a more precise view of risk exposure and supporting strategic decisions at the corporate level. From this perspective, safety becomes a continuous process of reading and interpreting risk, integrated into daily operations and geared toward anticipation.

A solution to reduce workplace injuries thanks to wearable technologies and AI

SoterCoach, the first wearable solution to improve individual ergonomic safety

Here are three insights that might interest you:

Fall arrest systems: with the new standard, safety becomes measurable.
How AI intercepts workplace risks before they become accidents
Workplace safety: the central role of ergonomic innovations