Anker wants to give the home an AI ‘brain’
Anker is a company that started out making charging accessories for high-tech devices, but in the years since its inception it has come a long way, and at this year’s IFA it is seeking to broaden its scope a little further, moving beyond power banks, earphones, cameras and domestic robots. This new focus appears to be closely linked to the trend that will shape the coming years: local data processing, applied first to the individual and then to the entire home. The first example can be seen in the new sleep-related products, which no longer merely facilitate the transition into the arms of Morpheus according to the user’s instructions, but collect certain physiological data and analyse it to activate different sound routines. This approach is also evident in the promising MindBase, the AI ‘brain’ previewed at the event, which promises to deliver wonders.
To support this new focus on data, Anker has decided to gradually bring its five brands – Anker, Anker Solix, soundcore, eufy and eufyMake – together under a single umbrella brand. The reason for this is that the five divisions now need to work closely together, as AI, robotics and edge computing are now integral to every single product.
Sleep becomes a stream of data
The new image Anker wishes to project is that of a highly innovative company, starting with the interesting SleepLab Pro, in which the company has done away with the wearable sleep monitor and replaced it with a bedside speaker incorporating a 60 GHz radar capable of monitoring sleep without physical contact, measuring heart rate and respiratory rate and, according to the company, distinguishing between four stages of sleep. The data is then used to personalise the audio content played throughout the night. This ‘move away’ from monitoring devices – transforming a piece of furniture into a data collection point – represents a significant shift in perspective which, if well executed, will make everything much more convenient: no more devices to wear whilst sleeping, nor accessories that need recharging. Each SleepLab Pro can monitor just one person overnight, making it personal even without having to wear it. The data is then, of course, sent to the app for analysis and to provide the user with insights. Whilst we wait for it to hit the market, we can still rely on Sleep 4 Pro and SleepLab Pro, two pairs of earphones designed specifically to be worn overnight, with the aim of dampening external noise and promoting rest. The Pro version, however, adds a physiological monitoring component: it uses PPG, heart rate and heart rate variability (HRV) and combines this information with a system called Track-Assess-Adjustment: it does not merely offer a library of white noise or soundscapes, but uses the data collected to dynamically adapt the audio via BioSync. The case itself becomes a small, standalone device, featuring a touchscreen, an alarm and access to statistics, reducing the need to keep your smartphone by the bedside.
MindBase: the attempt to give the home a local ‘brain’
The same principle — collecting data, interpreting it close to its source and taking action without constantly relying on the cloud — underpins Anker MindBase. In the press release presented in Berlin, the description remains cautious: MindBase is described as a platform currently under development, designed to connect devices from different manufacturers, process AI locally and store the information generated by home devices on-premises. Prices, availability and markets have not yet been announced, but the aim is ambitious and there are rumours that the first model will be launched in early 2027.
MindBase is a smart home hub, an AI platform, a CCTV recorder and a NAS. According to the company, it can manage nearly a hundred Anker devices and hundreds of Matter-compatible products; it also features dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Thread and Zigbee, and, thanks to Matter’s multi-admin capabilities, can work alongside Apple HomeKit, Amazon Alexa, Google Home and Home Assistant.
