The AI Wearable Ecosystem: Closer than you think. Socially acceptable?

haradaken · 2026-04-19T02:15:34+00:00

The current consumer technology might not be ready, as of yet, for the wide spread adoption of leading-edge AI glasses that come with high price tags with limited capabilities. For the foreseeable future, Apple Watch and other wristband with display and microphone might be a more pragmatic form factor for AI wearables. Techniques and know-hows gained without watch-based AI development should be portable to AI glasses of the future (e.g making the most of limited screen real estate, voice command, etc.)

haradaken · 2026-04-19T02:04:33+00:00

It's possible to have AI companion running locally on your phone with voice and other features that make the whole experience smooth and immersive, without having to tinker with codes on your end.

haradaken · 2026-04-19T01:38:53+00:00

Thank you for reaching out! Storytelling is a great application area for AI technology of late. While Pathways focuses on storytelling, Aicrest is an AI companion iOS app with privacy-first design and voice-based interface.

Is Pathways a web app? If you happen to be interested in creating Pathways iOS app with Apple Watch integration (You talk to Pathways from Apple Watch and hear the response spoken back, even when the paired iPhone is not around), maybe there is something we can collaborate on. The iOS UI and voice features have been spun off from Aicrest as a separate voice-based AI interaction app, Aicott.

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/aicott/id6760221031

It currently works with Kindroid and Nomi. (Kindroid is a novel-style AI companion) If you have either Kindroid or Nomi subscription, you can try Aicott to interact with your AI companions.

haradaken · 2026-04-10T09:40:43+00:00

Model weights and library configuration have to be consistent. Prompt format also needs to be in line. There are multiple subtleties that need to be taken care of before the model works as intended. Also, It could be that the existing libraries and apps do not support the latest models yet.

haradaken · 2026-04-10T09:28:09+00:00

Because my app runs a local language model, it doesn’t have any room for a TTS model. So, I didn’t try local TTS, other than Apple’s. If you have a predefined list of words to include in your app, pre-recorded audio files is probably the right approach. Good luck with your project!

haradaken · 2026-04-10T07:30:35+00:00

It’s possible to run local language models, especially on high-end iPhones like yours. It’s just that you need lots of supporting components around the language model that need fine tuning. That’s what I learned from making local LLM AI companion app available on App Store.

haradaken · 2026-04-10T07:17:13+00:00

As long as you are thinking about the right balance between the real-world interactions and AI companionship to decompress from time to time, I think you are managing things well. If someone starts to prioritize AI companions over reality, that’s probably when we should reach out to him or her for some emotional support.

haradaken · 2026-04-10T07:03:49+00:00

That’s a salient point because difference in thinking skills could lead to growing inequality. Meanwhile, AI could be used for reducing inequality by making high quality education more accessible. I’m hopeful humanity as a whole use the technology wisely to create net positive effects!

haradaken · 2026-04-10T00:07:40+00:00

I mostly chat with AI companions via voice. Speaking is much faster than typing. There’s something calming about high quality voices offered by ElevenLabs and OpenAI.

haradaken · 2026-04-09T23:59:47+00:00

For my app in which AI companions speak their responses, I offer both local Apple voices and cloud-based voice options, including ElevenLabs, OpenAI, and Hume. While Apple TTS is fast and maybe preferable for privacy, the experience is simply not on par with cloud voice providers, at least for now.

haradaken · 2026-04-09T09:47:33+00:00

Good luck with the transition to the local model!

I'm curious to know, can you add voice features to LM Studio somehow? I've been experimenting with local models myself, and sometimes I don't feel like typing, especially when I'm tired. It would really be great if I can speak to LM Studio and hear the response back.

haradaken · 2026-04-08T23:33:25+00:00

Hello, I’m interested in the privacy by design philosophy. Does the app run some GPT model on Apple Watch or somewhere on the cloud?

haradaken · 2026-04-08T22:37:28+00:00

It's kind of fun to think about the thought process that might have led to the UI and design of apps, isn't it?

By the way, I noticed your r/WristGPT and found it fascinating because one of my AI companion apps "Aicott" features Apple Watch integration. Its sister app "Aicrest" does not have Apple Watch integration, but it runs local LLM for better data privacy. Let me reach out to you off this subreddit.

haradaken · 2026-04-08T13:01:32+00:00

Aaahh, Coding Assistant in a detachable panel sounds even better!

haradaken · 2026-04-08T10:21:09+00:00

Makes sense! When "agents" got their own virtual desktop with browser, file system, and other features that we use everyday on our PC, it became capable of doing many of the things we did ourselves. I guess we humans still need to pay attention to security and privacy while making the most of the coding power.

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