The WeWalk Smart Cane 2 could be one of AI’s few good use cases at CES 2025

WeWalk launched a brand new model of its good cane for individuals with visible impairments at CES 2025, bringing a redesign that addresses lots of the first mannequin’s shortcomings and provides AI options and extra superior sensors from TDK. It’s positioned as a substitute for the standard foldable white cane. Co-founder Kursat Ceylan, who has been blind since beginning, says Sensible Cane 2 could make mobility simpler and safer, providing options like turn-by-turn navigation and impediment detection, together with a ChatGPT-powered voice assistant that places on-demand data in customers’ arms with out the necessity for them to additionally juggle a smartphone.

The WeWalk Sensible Cane 2 has a slimmer deal with than its predecessor, which ought to make for a extra comfy grip, and the corporate says it’s now about as light-weight as a normal white cane. It has tactile buttons to be extra user-friendly, taking away the touchpad of the earlier mannequin that some individuals discovered to be troublesome to make use of. Ceylan says it may be utilized in totally different climate circumstances, not simply when it’s heat and dry (WeWalk describes the brand new cane as “rainwater-resistant”). The battery life is about 20 hours.

“You possibly can fold and unfold it once you want it. There is a speaker, a microphone, impediment detection expertise and a flashlight to make visually impaired individuals extra seen at night time. And in addition it has movement sensors in itself to offer a extra correct navigation expertise,” Ceylan defined.

Beneath the hood, the WeWalk Sensible Cane 2 has an ultrasonic time-of-flight sensor, an inertial measurement unit with six-axis movement monitoring, a pulse density modulated microphone and a barometric strain sensor from electronics firm TDK. When it detects one thing forward, it alerts the person with each haptic and audio suggestions, in response to Ceylan.

He demonstrated this within the very cramped, noisy setting of the Las Vegas Conference Middle, and I used to be capable of hear over the group when the cane instructed him he was approaching an impediment — on this case, a carpeted step marked with yellow and black tape that I noticed a number of CES attendees stumble over throughout our dialog. It can also hook up with headphones through Bluetooth.

Paired together with your smartphone, it can provide navigation directions and details about your environment, in addition to public transportation choices. “You possibly can hear the names of shops and eating places you might be passing by,” he says. In Starbucks, the place he isn’t capable of learn the menu, he says he may ask the assistant in the event that they promote chocolate croissants.

“You need not maintain your smartphone anymore if you are going someplace,” Ceylan stated. “You possibly can put it into your pocket after which you will get all the data by your WeWalk good cane.” There’s a smartphone interface for individuals who need to use it, although, which he held up by the demo so I may see what was happening on the opposite finish. In contrast to the overwhelming majority of merchandise I’ve encountered at CES this 12 months that appear to incorporate AI or ChatGPT for no actual purpose aside from the truth that they will, this really felt like a state of affairs the place it is smart and will even be fairly helpful.

Because it’s model new, we don’t but know the way all of it will translate to real-world use. Pre-orders are actually open for the WeWalk Sensible Cane 2, and the primary wave is anticipated to begin transport earlier than the top of this month. There are two value fashions: $850 for the good cane plus a subscription for the voice assistant that prices $4.99 per thirty days, or $1150 altogether with no further subscription price for full use of the AI. WeWalk Sensible Cane 2 is accessible internationally.

The London-based startup additionally has a partnership with the Canadian Nationwide Institute for the Blind (CNIB) that kicks off in February, when the group will begin utilizing the WeWalk Sensible Cane 2 for its cane coaching program. The objective is to assemble significant information for instructors to allow them to actually perceive how individuals are utilizing mobility canes (AI-enabled or in any other case), and assist them get probably the most out of the instruments. That, Ceylan says, “is so necessary, as a result of the higher you get round, the higher you interact in life.”

Replace, January 9 2025, 11:55AM ET: This story has been up to date so as to add particulars on the good cane’s battery life.