A wearable startup called Taya has introduced a necklace designed to record and summarize voice notes while limiting recordings to the wearer’s voice. The company also announced a $5 million seed funding round as it develops a wearable note-taking device that addresses privacy concerns surrounding AI-powered recording gadgets.
The funding round was led by MaC Venture Capital and Female Founders Fund, with participation from a16z Speedrun.
Wearable AI Note-Taking Devices Gain Attention
Wearable gadgets that transcribe and summarize conversations have emerged as a growing category as improvements in voice-to-text technology enable new AI-driven tools.
Several companies are developing devices designed to record meetings or daily interactions. Startups such as Plaud and Pocket focus on recording and summarizing meetings.
Other companies are experimenting with different wearable formats. Devices from Friend, Omi, and Bee use pendants, wristbands, or similar accessories to record conversations and daily experiences.
Some of these products have raised concerns because they may record other people without their consent.
Design Focused On Capturing Only The User’s Voice
Taya’s device attempts to address those concerns by recording only the wearer’s voice.
The product, called the Taya Necklace, is designed to resemble jewelry rather than a conventional gadget. The device sells for $89 and can be worn as a pendant.
Users activate recording by tapping a button on the necklace. The microphone remains turned off by default until the user begins recording.
An accompanying iOS application stores recorded notes and provides an AI chat feature that allows users to ask questions about their saved recordings.
The system prioritizes the wearer’s voice during recording. During the onboarding process, the app asks users to record a sample of their voice. That sample is used as a reference when the device captures audio.
The company said it is also testing directional microphones to further isolate the wearer’s speech from surrounding sounds.
Company Background And Development
Taya was founded in 2024 by Elena Wagenmans along with Cinnamon Sipper and Amy Zhou.
Both Sipper and Zhou previously worked at Apple but have since left the startup.
Wagenmans said the goal was to create a wearable that avoids the social and privacy concerns sometimes associated with recording devices.
“We realized that there is a lot of utility that you can provide, being a single-player gadget,” she told TechCrunch. “Essentially, we want to capture your voice, not the room that you’re in or the other people.”
The company is also experimenting with different interaction mechanisms that make it easier for users to create notes and receive confirmation from the pendant that a recording has been saved.
Team And Investment Perspective
Taya currently has five full-time employees and several contractors working from its office in San Francisco.
Adrian Fenty said the company’s focus on privacy and product design could help it reach users beyond early adopters.
Fenty said the product differs from other AI note-taking devices because it focuses on intentional recording by a single user rather than capturing entire conversations.
“Those products are ambient recorders; they capture meetings and conversations around you,” Fenty said. “Taya’s intentional, single-player capture is focused on just you.”
Featured image credits: Pickpik
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