Nirva raises $33M for a pendant that only listens to you
Startup Nirva has raised $33 million to develop a wearable pendant that uses ambient AI to passively listen to and model the wearer's speech. The device aims to differentiate itself from other voice recorders by focusing exclusively on the user's own voice for personal modeling.
Why it matters
It represents a new frontier in 'ambient computing' where hardware is designed to be invisible and deeply integrated into personal life, raising significant privacy questions.
Ambient AI is having a moment. Amazon launched a new wrist-worn device with Bee; a former Plaud exec launched ambient apps through a startup called Ambi, which aims to also build its own hardware; and Apple launched Voice Intelligence features during its iPhone launch in September. Now, a company called Nirva is betting on a jewelry-like pendant and its ability to listen only to the wearer.
The startup today announced a new $25 million pre-Series A round, adding to the $8 million it raised earlier in the year from investors like Lightspeed and South Park Commons, bringing its total raise to $33 million.
Nirva was founded in 2025 by two former Meta Reality Labs employees, Wei Lyu and Jason Chen, along with Hanying Hu, who founded a fashion and jewelry brand.
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