The AI wearable market is full of dead devices. NeoSapien thinks India can turn the tide

What is the market for AI wearables? And what does they do that a phone already doesn’t?These were the two main questions we asked Dhananjay Yadav, the co-founder and CEO of NeoSapien, a startup that makes an AI-powered pendant that “transcribes in real time, summarises what matters, and reminds you to follow through”. He calls it a “productivity tool” that will change how we interact with devices.But the AI wearable market is tricky. Remember Humane? The AI pin company? It raised $230 million, shipped fewer than 10,000 devices, and permanently bricked every single one of them on February 28, 2025. And Rabbit, the other AI wearable startup that made a big splash, sold 100,000 units and watched 95% of its users disappear within five months. And yet here is Dhananjay who is building a pendant in Bengaluru, telling us India can win the global AI wearable race. And the product, he says, will be used by regular people: small business owners, real estate agents, and even journalists. Tune in!____This episode was produced by Vidhatri Rao and edited by Cymasonic productions.____Zeus, the mascot of Zero Shot, was generated using AI. Everything else is made by humans, just like all articles, columns, newsletters, and other podcasts created by The Ken.Write to us at [email protected]. We are all ears!Recommended Reading:NeoSapienWhat Anthropic’s Mythos can hack in hours, Indian banks take months to fixNote taking app PlaudCan a Note-Taking AI Bracelet Really Make You More Productive? I Tested One to Find Out.