For inventors and first-time founders
Cameras that recognise, wearables that listen, robots that move. We help you decide whether your idea needs AI and where it should run: on a tiny chip, a bigger board or the cloud. Then we build it under NDA so it keeps working when the internet doesn't, runs on a battery that lasts, and comes with files you own.
The short answer
Physical AI is artificial intelligence that lives inside a real object and acts in the real world. NVIDIA describes it as machines that "perceive, understand, and perform complex actions in the physical world." In practice it means a device that senses something, decides on the spot and does something about it, often without waiting for the internet.
"Physical AI" is a young term and experts draw the lines differently. We use the plain meanings above.
Start with the right question
Many good inventions don't. Adding AI costs battery, parts and development time, so we check first. Your idea usually falls into one of three answers.
If the device reacts to clear thresholds, such as a temperature, a button or a schedule, well-written firmware does the job. It is cheaper, uses less power and is easier to certify.
ExampleA plant sensor that alerts when soil is dry.
If it must recognise something messy, such as a voice, a face, a bird or a fall, a small AI model runs on the device itself. It answers instantly, works offline and keeps data private.
ExampleA hearing aid that separates speech from noise.
If it needs to hold a conversation or know the latest information, the heavy thinking happens online. We still give the device an offline fallback so its core job never stops.
ExampleA voice note pin that writes summaries after a meeting.
Your product's brain
The chip decides your battery life, size, heat and cost per unit. Here are the four levels we design with, in plain words.
Level 1 · Microwatts
Hears a wake word, spots a gesture, notices an unusual vibration.
Power
Microwatts to a few milliwatts. Can run for months on a small battery with the right design.
Cost
Lowest cost per unit.
Level 2 · Hundreds of milliwatts
Sees a person, a pet or an object with a small camera, a few times a second.
Power
Hundreds of milliwatts. Rechargeable battery recommended.
Cost
Low cost per unit.
Level 3 · About 2 to 5 watts
Tracks objects in real time, reads text, follows body pose.
Power
About 2 to 5 watts. Rechargeable pack or wall power.
Cost
Add-on AI boards from about $70 to $130.
Level 4 · 15 to 130 watts
Combines several cameras, maps a room, runs language and vision models for robots that talk and move.
Power
15 to 130 watts. Large battery or wall power.
Cost
Development kits from $399 to $5,499.
Rule of thumbA battery gadget should not try to chat on the device. A robot that talks needs a Level 4 brain.
Prices are published development-kit prices, checked November 2026. NVIDIA raised Jetson prices in July 2026, so we re-check every quote.
Lessons from 2024 and 2025
The best-known AI gadgets of 2024 and 2025 didn't fail because of bad hardware. They stopped working when the cloud behind them went dark.
Case 01 · Stopped working
Reviewers called it slow and hot, with about four hours of battery. After HP bought the company for $116M, every pin stopped working on 28 February 2025.
Case 02 · Stopped working
A children's robot of around $800 whose main features needed the cloud. When a funding round fell through in December 2024, the robots went silent.
Case 03 · Stopped working
A $2,349.99 security robot discontinued within eight months. Amazon refunded buyers, but the devices stopped working in September 2024.
What we build
The best place for an inventor to start is a focused device that does one smart job. Here is what's on the market now, and where it's heading.
On the market nowBird Buddy, the AI bird feeder that names the species at your window. It started on Kickstarter.
RisingGarden and lawn tools that spot weeds, pests or dry patches on their own.
On the market nowFurbo 360° dog camera that follows your dog around the room; Litter-Robot 4 self-cleaning litter box.
RisingCollars and feeders that notice changes in behaviour and health early.
On the market nowPhonak Audéo Sphere Infinio hearing aids, with a dedicated AI chip that pulls speech out of noise; ElliQ, a companion for older adults.
RisingFall and routine sensors that let people live independently for longer, without cameras in every room.
On the market nowPlaud NotePin, a wearable that records and summarises conversations.
RisingLow-power wearables built on new AI microcontrollers announced at CES 2026.
On the market nowCarbon Robotics LaserWeeder G2, which uses onboard vision to remove weeds with lasers.
RisingSmaller smart traps, sorters and inspection tools for farms and workshops.
On the market nowRobot vacuums and pool cleaners that map the space they clean.
RisingLower-cost humanoid and helper robots, such as the Unitree R1 announced at around $5,900.
Products named are made by other companies and shown as market examples, not as Inventornest work.
Process and cost
We move in stages, each with a fixed price, so you never pay for the next step before the last one works.
We confirm whether you need AI, choose the brain level, and give you a power budget and fixed quotes.
Your AI working on an off-the-shelf board, so you can see it before custom hardware.
Custom board, firmware, trained model and housing, tested on battery.
FCC and safety testing, manufacturing files and a pilot run.
About costPublished industry estimates put a connected consumer device at about $120,000 to $400,000 from idea to production, and a robotics startup at about $2 million and 18 months to first units. Your fixed quote comes from the feasibility check.
Get my free AI feasibility checkUS rules
Every design choice brings a rule with it. We plan for these from day one so they don't surprise you at launch.
Selling in Europe too? The EU AI Act's main obligations for AI inside products start in 2027 and 2028.
What you own
FAQ
Edge AI means AI that runs on a device instead of in the cloud. Physical AI goes a step further: the device senses the world, decides and then acts, for example a robot that moves or a tool that responds. Every physical AI product uses edge AI, but not every edge AI product moves.
On the device when you need instant answers, privacy, long battery life or no monthly server bill. In the cloud when the product must hold open conversations or use fresh information. Most good products mix both, with the core job on the device so it keeps working offline.
Yes. Small models, known as TinyML, run on microcontrollers that use milliwatts of power. They handle wake words, keyword spotting, gestures and vibration alerts well, and simple person detection at a few frames per second. They cannot run chatbots or large language models.
It depends on what the device must recognise, how long the battery must last and your target price. A wake-word wearable needs a reflex chip, a smart camera needs a vision chip or AI board, and a talking robot needs a Jetson-class computer. The feasibility check ends with a recommendation and reasons.
It depends on the brain level, the sensors and the certifications. With us, every project starts with a $1,000 to $2,000 feasibility check that ends in fixed quotes. For context, published industry estimates put a connected consumer device at about $120,000 to $400,000 from idea to production.
A proof of concept on a development kit can take a few weeks. An engineered prototype on a custom board typically takes 3 to 6 months. A certified product ready for manufacturing usually takes 9 to 14 months or more, and robots often take around 18 months.
Often, yes. We review your current electronics, firmware and housing, then decide whether a new chip, an AI module or a firmware update is enough. Adding AI to a proven product is usually faster than starting from scratch.
Not at the start. Many products begin with an existing open model that we adapt. If your product must recognise something specific, we plan how to collect and label the data, and the trained model and data belong to you.
You do. We sign an NDA before you share details, and at each stage we hand over the firmware, trained model, training data, schematics and CAD files, so you are never locked in to us or to a cloud vendor.
Yes. Most of our clients are inventors and founders building their first product. We explain every choice in plain language and break the work into small fixed-price stages, so you can stop, raise money or pitch between them.
We design so it doesn't take your product with it. The core job runs on the device, cloud features have a fallback, and you hold the code and model needed to move to another provider. Humane AI Pin and Moxie stopped working because they had no such plan.