WeWard Ties App Access To Daily Step Goals With New Walking Mode

WeWard, the Paris-based app that rewards users for walking, is expanding its focus beyond physical activity with a new feature designed to help people reduce screen time by tying access to social media and other apps to daily step goals.

A New Incentive To Get Moving

The feature, called Walking Mode, allows users to lock selected apps until they reach a preset number of steps. Someone, for example, can choose to block TikTok or Instagram until completing 3,000 steps, with the target fully customizable.

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The addition builds on WeWard’s existing model, which rewards users with in-app currency called Wards for walking. Those rewards can be exchanged for cash, gift cards or charitable donations, while a leaderboard introduces a social element by allowing users to compare their progress with friends and other members of the community.

Blending Fitness With Digital Wellbeing

Walking Mode reflects a broader shift in consumer behaviour, as more people look not only to become more active but also to spend less time on their phones. Rather than encouraging users to quit social media altogether, the feature creates a simple behavioural incentive by linking screen time to physical activity.

The approach positions WeWard as more than a fitness app, combining movement tracking with digital wellbeing tools at a time when concerns over excessive screen use continue to grow.

Expanding A Growing Platform

WeWard says it now serves 30 million users across 29 countries, including 4 million in the United States, and estimates that its platform has increased users’ walking time by nearly 25%. The company is also backed by tennis champion and angel investor Venus Williams.

Co-founder Yves Benchimol said the new feature reflects a broader philosophy behind the product.

“We believe the next generation of products should be designed to create healthier behaviors in the real world, not simply capture more attention,” he told TechCrunch. “Walking Mode is our contribution to that vision, and we hope it inspires a broader conversation about mindful design and how the industry defines success.”

A Different Approach To Engagement

Unlike many consumer apps that aim to maximise time spent on their platforms, WeWard says users typically spend only a few minutes a day inside the app. The company views that as a feature rather than a limitation, arguing that products designed to encourage real-world activity should not compete for users’ attention.

Its business model also differs from many consumer apps. Rather than selling user data to third parties, WeWard says it generates revenue through premium subscriptions, affiliate partnerships, advertising and in-app purchases.

As competition among wellness apps intensifies, Walking Mode represents WeWard’s latest attempt to combine financial incentives with healthier digital habits, encouraging users to spend more time moving and less time scrolling.

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Europe’s Deadly Summer Heat Exposed The Cost Of A Warming Continent

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

October 23, 2026

Europe experienced its deadliest summer for heat-related deaths on record in 2026, with an estimated 24,400 excess deaths linked to extreme temperatures across 30 countries. Researchers estimate that human-induced climate change was responsible for around 32,000 of the deaths attributed to heat in the study’s broader analysis, accounting for 65% of the total.

The findings highlight the growing public-health consequences of global warming, largely driven by fossil fuel use, as extreme heat becomes more frequent and severe.

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A Summer Of Dangerous Heat

Between June and August, heatwaves pushed temperatures in Western Europe to an average of 2.9°C above the 1991–2020 norm, with some days reaching 12°C above average. Nearly a third of estimated heat-related deaths occurred during a particularly intense heatwave between 17 June and 1 July.

“These numbers are a stark reminder that our hotter, more extreme summers are having an increasingly severe impact on public health,” said Dr Clair Barnes, a researcher at Imperial College London and co-author of the study.

The estimated toll exceeded previous peaks of around 29,000 deaths in summer 2022 and 28,000 in 2003 across the region studied.

How Researchers Estimated The Toll

Researchers modelled the relationship between temperature and mortality across 854 urban areas in the EU, UK, Norway and Switzerland, covering around 40% of the population in the 30 countries studied.

The analysis incorporated temperature records, age, socioeconomic conditions, environmental factors and access to healthcare. By comparing actual temperatures with those expected without human-induced warming, the team estimated the additional deaths attributable to climate change.

Final official mortality figures for summer 2026 are not yet available in many countries, and heat-related deaths are often underreported because their effects can be difficult to identify directly.

Older People Face The Greatest Risk

People aged 85 and over accounted for roughly half of the estimated deaths. However, the impact extended across age groups, with around 800 excess deaths among adults aged 20–44 and approximately 6,000 among people under 65.

Southern Europe experienced the highest mortality burden, reflecting hotter temperatures and other vulnerabilities, including air pollution, limited green space and unequal access to healthcare and heat-alert systems.

Italy, France And Spain Record Highest Toll

Italy recorded an estimated 13,303 heat-related excess deaths, followed by France with 7,268 and Spain with 6,824. Germany recorded around 6,340, while the UK saw an estimated 4,354 deaths.

In the UK, the heat also placed significant pressure on healthcare services. Andrew Hartle, Professor of Practice of Anaesthesia at Imperial College Healthcare, said demand during the summer resembled that of a severe winter virus season.

Cities Urged To Strengthen Heat Protection

Researchers say cities can reduce the risks through climate shelters, external shading and building retrofits, alongside measures to help residents avoid exposure during the hottest hours. Checking on vulnerable people, staying hydrated and following heat alerts are also important.

The researchers stress that adaptation must go hand in hand with reducing fossil fuel use to limit further warming. The findings underline that extreme heat is already a major public-health threat across Europe, with thousands of lives at risk each summer.

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