{"id":319185,"date":"2025-12-16T14:27:15","date_gmt":"2025-12-16T14:27:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/319185\/"},"modified":"2025-12-16T14:27:15","modified_gmt":"2025-12-16T14:27:15","slug":"could-2026-be-the-year-life-logging-wearable-ai-devices-take-off","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/319185\/","title":{"rendered":"Could 2026 be the year \u2018life-logging\u2019 wearable AI devices take off?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Struggling with what to get the AI-obsessed tech geek in your life for Christmas? I may have the answer: Have you thought of a \u201clife-logger\u201d? <\/p>\n

If you believe the tech bros, AI\u2019s centre of gravity is moving from screens to our bodies. With the delightful euphemism, \u201clife-logging,\u201d tech companies are marketing a range of wearable AI<\/a> devices that record the audio of your entire day, producing summaries, notes or transcripts at the end of it. Which raises the question: have you lived if you haven\u2019t logged?<\/p>\n

While buying an \u201cexternal-memory\u201d or \u201csecond brain\u201d (more excellent marketing terms) could have benefits, they may be offset by the obvious Black-Mirrorish pitfalls. <\/p>\n

The most hyped of these products was the $699 Humane AI Pin<\/a>, founded by ex-Apple designers, which flopped and sold its assets in February to HP. But never fear, there are others and they are fast winning investment from the big guns. <\/p>\n

Bee, a company that sells a $50 AI wristband that \u201cturns your moments into meaning\u201d was bought by Amazon in July for an undisclosed sum. Limitless, which makes a $299 AI pendant, was acquired by Meta just a few weeks ago. There is also Plaud, which claims to have 1.5 million users of its \u00a3126 recorders and Omi\u2019s $89 big button pendant that you can stick \u2014 where else \u2014 to your temple. <\/p>\n

Could 2026 be the year such wearable AI devices really take off? Limitless co-founder Dan Siroker has claimed: \u201cWe\u2019re no longer working on a weird fringe idea. We\u2019re building a future that now seems inevitable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Altman, chief executive of OpenAI, thinks so too. He has partnered with the legendary Apple designer Jony Ive, buying his start-up in May for $6.5 billion. Their planned AI product is heavily under wraps, but judging by Altman\u2019s hints, it takes this idea of \u201clife-logging\u201d to the next level. <\/p>\n

\u2022 Will Mark Zuckerberg\u2019s AI drive fare better than his metaverse?<\/a><\/p>\n

Altman describes the iPhone as \u201cthe crowning achievement of consumer products\u201d , but using it, he said, is stressful. \u201cI feel like I am walking through Times Square in New York and constantly just dealing with all the little indignities along the way: flashing lights in my face, tension going here, people bumping into me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead, the alternative screen-free device being dreamt up by OpenAI, should make us feel like we are \u201csitting in the most beautiful cabin by a lake and in the mountains and just enjoying the peace and calm \u2026 just letting us focus on other stuff,\u201d Altman mused. Something which has \u201cincredible contextual awareness of your whole life\u201d. <\/p>\n

It reflects a future being widely discussed in tech: \u201cAmbient AI\u201d, something which works in the background of everyday life, listening and interpreting what\u2019s happening without you having to use an app or actively prompt it. Then, like Santa\u2019s little helper, it takes helpful actions without interrupting the user. <\/p>\n

A pen? A pendant? What could this relaxing wearable ChatGPT powered OpenAI thingamabob be? Something for next year\u2019s Christmas list. <\/p>\n

If this all sounds a bit woo-woo, Google is launching AI glasses powered by Gemini in 2026. There will be a range with no screen and one with a display on the lenses. This is its second brave foray into spectacles. Back in 2013 it went over its skis when it launched Google Glass, pulled shortly afterwards on privacy concerns. Life-loggers take note.<\/p>\n

Meta is also planning an expansion of its AI glasses at the start of next year, and has poached Apple\u2019s designer Alan Dye, in its quest to \u201cbring personal superintelligence to everyone\u201d. It is a lucrative market. HSBC estimates that about 77 million pairs of smart glasses could be sold in 2030, valuing the sector at $36 billion. <\/p>\n

In other wearable news, Apple may appear to be lagging behind in the AI race, but the doyenne of tech hardware\u2019s live-translating AirPods are already in the shops. <\/p>\n

So, there is lots to look forward to in the wacky wearable AI year ahead. And most obviously, it gives Father Christmas an easy way to monitor our every move and find out who\u2019s on the naughty list. <\/p>\n

Katie Prescott is Technology Business Editor of The Times<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Struggling with what to get the AI-obsessed tech geek in your life for Christmas? I may have the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":319186,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[554,733,4308,86,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-319185","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-artificial-intelligence","8":"tag-ai","9":"tag-artificial-intelligence","10":"tag-artificialintelligence","11":"tag-technology","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom","14":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319185","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=319185"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319185\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/319186"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=319185"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=319185"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=319185"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}