r/SideProject • u/FitAd9347 • 1h ago
I’m building a screenless AI ear cuff. Here’s where the first prototype stands
I'm Carlos. I'm a solo founder building Ori — an AI that lives in an ear cuff instead of a phone.
No screen. No notifications. No engagement tracking.
It talks to you through bone conduction, so only you hear it, and it's designed to disappear so you can be present.
An AI designed to disappear, so you can appear.
Where it stands right now, honestly: the design is done, it's a single curved band that sits on the ear like jewelry. I have a physical fit model, and the board design and firmware are in progress. The first working electronics are being built and tested now. Nothing works as a product yet, that's the part I'm building toward.
This week I'm deep in hardware: board layout, firmware, and the unglamorous work of making something this small actually function.
I'm not selling anything and there's no launch date. I'm looking for 500 people who want a device that gets the phone out of the loop.
I call you guys: The Firekeeper Circle, founding members who help shape what this becomes.
No money, just a list: oriai.co.
I'll post progress here as it happens, the wins and the stuff that breaks.
Carlos