Nirva, a US startup making AI wearables, said on October 22 that it raised a US$25 million pre-series A round for an AI pendant that listens to its wearer, bringing total funding to US$33 million.

Founded in 2025 by former Meta Reality Labs employees Wei Lyu and Jason Chen, with Hanying Hu, Nirva said voice samples collected during setup let the device filter out nearby speakers.

The company said it deletes audio and transcripts after processing by default.

Nirva plans to open orders in November and aims to ship the US$249 pendant to early users by year-end.

It was not clear whether the device processes speech locally or remotely.

The product will enter a market where dedicated AI wearables have already struggled.

Humane said in February 2025 it would wind down its AI Pin business and sell assets to HP.

It could also face differing US recording rules.

Some states require consent from all parties for certain conversations, while others allow one-party consent.

🔗 Source: TechCrunch