A new start-up is building a wearable that transforms into a stationary smart device at home as tech for creating a daily journal. The start-up behind iKairos is calling the device a “journal for daily reflection and meaningful memories.” The kicker? Those memories are all AI-generated.
iKairos has an unusual design for a wearable – teaser photos show the device worn as a necklace outside. But once the user returns home, the gadget can be returned to a docking station that looks a bit reminiscent of smart home speakers like the Amazon Echo Dot or Google Home.
The design isn’t the only unusual approach iKairos is making for wearables – the device is meant to follow you around to create a daily journal, but unlike traditional wearables and POV cameras, iKairos makes AI-generated images to remember the day by.
On the one hand, Kairos solves a problem with the wearable camera – the limited fixed perspective from body-worn POV cameras isn’t always the best perspective for capturing memories. After all, sometimes I want to be in photos too. The built-in camera also has a cover for privacy.
But is GenAI capable of creating “meaningful memories?” The sample photos that are on iKairos’ website seem like obvious AI generations. But the sample images are all designed for a certain style – and aren’t necessarily made to look like genuine images but rather sketches, comic book art, cartoons, and even crocheted characters.
iKairos is trying to create an AI-generated journal of the day at a time when consumers are becoming increasingly weary of modern tech. We're getting so weary of modern tech that analog cameras are resurging alongside lo-fi digicams and screen-free digital cameras.
iKairos comes from a start-up called Lingverse – but the company isn’t entirely new to the tech world. Lingverse’s founder Jiawei Gu was a board member and investor for Jibo, a social robot that could also take family photos and was one of TIME’s Best Inventions of 2017. But after financial struggles, Jibo shut down, turning off its servers in 2019.
iKairos is only in the early stages, but has already secured $29 million in a pre-A funding round. Details on pricing, specs, and the launch date aren’t yet available this early in the start-up's journey – and with the tech in the early stages, the wearable could look quite different closer to launch.
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