Indian wearable maker Ultrahuman has closed a $70 million funding round backed by Qualcomm Ventures, Labcorp, Alpha Wave, Blume Ventures, Nexus Venture Partners and Alteria Capital, valuing the company at $365 million—roughly three times its 2023 valuation. The round includes $65 million in equity and $5 million in debt, and Ultrahuman is now developing a new ring built on Qualcomm silicon instead of its current Nordic Semiconductor chip.
techcrunch.com
· 2026-09-03
Circular unveiled its Series 3 smart ring at IFA, adding NFC payments compatible with Visa and MasterCard alongside a returning vibration motor for silent alerts. The lineup splits into the fully-featured Ring 3 Pro, with ECG and haptics, and the slimmer, lighter Ring 3 Slim that drops those features. Battery life nearly doubles to 12 days, and both models ship with a 700mAh charging case.
engadget.com
· 2026-09-03
HTC is bringing its Vive Eagle smart glasses to the US market after debuting them last year, offering a screen-free, glasses-first design. The device includes a 12MP ultrawide camera, 32GB of encrypted storage, and support for either OpenAI or Gemini voice assistants, running on Qualcomm's Snapdragon AR1 chip. Pricing starts at $499 for standard or sunglass lenses, rising to $599 for photochromic versions.
androidauthority.com
· 2026-09-03
Philips Hue is expanding its smart lighting range with unconventional designs, including a flexible, colorful light that can be bent into shapes and a tall pole light meant to be propped against a wall rather than mounted. The additions signal a shift toward more sculptural, decor-focused lighting rather than purely functional fixtures.
gizmodo.com
· 2026-09-03
Kohler Health and startup Throne are marketing camera-equipped toilet attachments that use AI to scan urine and stool for color, consistency, and hydration markers, then generate daily 'gut health' scores through a companion app. Kohler's device costs $449 with a $130 annual membership, while Throne, which recently raised $10 million, charges $399 plus a $70 yearly fee. Both companies say their tools track what's normal for each user rather than issuing blanket health verdicts, unlike existing at-home microbiome test kits.
wired.com
· 2026-09-03
Xiaomi officially unveiled the Xiaomi 18 Fold at IFA 2026, giving the public its first real look at the wide-screen foldable in a cherry red finish after weeks of leaked images. The device features a triple-camera setup with a focal range suggesting roughly 3.3x telephoto zoom, and it debuts alongside more than 380 other products at Xiaomi's booth, including its smart home and connected ecosystem lineup.
androidauthority.com
· 2026-09-03
Anker introduced MindBase, a device positioned as a central controller for connected homes, combining Matter compatibility with local AI processing and built-in network-attached storage. The product aims to manage smart home devices while also handling data storage and AI tasks directly on the hardware rather than relying solely on the cloud.
gizmodo.com
· 2026-09-03
Anker plans to phase out its Soundcore, Eufy, and other sub-brand names worldwide, consolidating everything under the unified Anker identity. The rollout will vary by country—Japan, for instance, is set to complete the switch by the end of 2026 under a 'One Anker' initiative—meaning products currently sold as Soundcore earbuds or Eufy cameras will eventually be rebranded as Anker devices.
androidauthority.com
· 2026-09-03
Philips Hue is rolling out Custom AI Behaviors, a feature letting users describe desired lighting automations in plain language instead of manually configuring rules. Announced at IFA alongside a new Sonos speaker integration for Hue switches, both updates arrive via a software update in November. The AI feature requires the Hue Bridge Pro's processing power to run.
theverge.com
· 2026-09-03
Philips Hue is partnering with rival Nanoleaf to bring Hexagon, Triangle, and Mini Triangle wall panels into its smart lighting system via a new $39.99 Wall Light Module, available starting September 3rd. The module contains Hue's full connectivity stack—Bluetooth, Zigbee, and Thread—letting users control the panels through the Hue app or Matter-compatible apps like Apple Home, while also unlocking Hue scenes, automations, and entertainment features.
theverge.com
· 2026-09-03
Anker introduced the Eufy MindBase at IFA Berlin, a local AI hub that runs an on-device LLM to process camera footage without sending it to the cloud. The device acts as a Matter controller supporting over 40 device categories, works with Apple HomeKit Secure Video, Alexa, Google Home, and Home Assistant, and can handle up to 16 wireless cameras, four wired cameras, and 34 sensors. Anker also announced companion products including the TrackLight Cam S1, S4 video doorbell, and a window camera, though pricing and release dates remain unannounced.
theverge.com
· 2026-09-03
A Reddit user reported that their Google Home assistant began calling them 'Fish Lemon' after a casual conversation about cooking fish weeks earlier. The nickname has persisted across reminders, smart display labels, and direct queries about their name, resisting attempts to correct it despite their Google Account showing their real name.
androidauthority.com
· 2026-09-02
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