Amazon to acquire AI wearable startup Bee, that has the ability to listen to everything you say

Amazon has confirmed plans to acquire San Francisco-based startup Bee, a company developing an AI-powered wristband capable of listening to conversations and generating summaries, to-do lists and more. The announcement comes shortly after Bee’s CEO and co-founder Maria de Lourdes Zollo shared the news in a LinkedIn post.

Bee’s $50 bracelet is designed to automatically transcribe spoken conversations, offering users a seamless way to record and distil everyday interactions. The wearable includes mute functionality for privacy. An Amazon spokesperson said the company intends to collaborate with Bee to enhance user control over the device.

“We imagined a world where AI is truly personal, where your life is understood and enhanced by technology that learns with you,” Zollo wrote. She did not immediately respond to further comment.

While Amazon declined to disclose the financial terms of the deal, the transaction has not yet closed. Once finalised, Bee is expected to join the division led by Amazon Devices chief Panos Panay.

This is not Amazon’s first move into the wearable space. The tech giant previously launched its Halo fitness bands but discontinued the product line in 2023. It also continues to sell smart glasses under the Echo brand, integrated with its Alexa voice assistant.

The deal positions Amazon in a growing market of AI-powered consumer hardware. Earlier this year, OpenAI acquired io, a device startup led by former Apple designer Jony Ive, in a $6.5 billion deal. AI wearables remain a frontier space, with startups experimenting with mixed results.

Bee was founded in 2022 and has quickly gained attention for its minimalist device aimed at making AI more intuitive and hands-free. The bracelet listens, learns and summarises without requiring screens or manual input, fitting into a broader trend of ambient computing.