Ozlo<\/a>, the maker of comfortable, easy-to-use \u201csleepbuds\u201d that drown out outside noise<\/a> so you can get better rest, is turning its product into a platform.<\/p>\n The company\u2019s plan began to take shape last month with the announcement of a partnership between Ozlo and meditation app Calm<\/a>. But it kicked into high gear at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week as the company met with prospective partners to expand its reach.<\/p>\n Those new partners could help Ozlo tap into new audiences and build a revenue model beyond consumer-focused hardware and into the profit-margin-rich world of software subscriptions and healthcare. For instance, software features that use AI or are designed to provide relief to users with tinnitus could be offered as premium subscriptions. And a recent acquisition of a neurotech startup should help Ozlo expand beyond being a consumer product to entering the medical device market, too.<\/p>\n Founded by former Bose employees, Ozlo always intended to build an ecosystem, Ozlo co-founder and CEO NB Patil explained on the sidelines of CES.<\/p>\n \u201cThe way we did that from the beginning is we built the iOS and Android SDK \u2014 so our first-party app actually runs on that SDK. That means whatever you see in our app can be made available to anybody,\u201d Patil said.<\/p>\n The mental wellness company Calm, for instance, is using the SDK to tell whether its sleep and meditation content is actually resonating with its customers. While Calm can\u2019t tell from its own app if customers have fallen asleep, Ozlo\u2019s sensors can. The device detects how body movements and respiration rates change, and that data is sent to the Ozlo charging case. There, a machine learning algorithm determines whether someone is asleep or is relaxed.<\/p>\n Ozlo\u2019s smart case has other sensors as well, including a temperature sensor and a light sensor that can add more data.<\/p>\n Now, that information can be shared with apps like Calm and others. <\/p>\n For example, if a user started playing a breathing exercise, Ozlo could tell if their respiration rate had gone down and share that data with its partner. If the exercise is unsuccessful, the partner would know they need to change the pattern or do something different. <\/p>\n \u201cSo there are two parts,\u201d Patil notes. \u201cTaking real-time action when the customer achieves the desired state [which Ozlo does with its feature that can shut off sounds after the user falls asleep] and the other part, which is very important, actually \u2014 that content creators are not quite thinking about \u2014 is, are they investing in the right content?\u201d <\/p>\n Patil explains that content creators for these types of meditation and sleeping aid apps tend to invest in volume without measuring whether or not their content is effective. <\/p>\n \u201cThey don\u2019t understand, actually, how it works in the field because there is no data,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n This relationship could also add another revenue stream to Ozlo\u2019s business beyond selling hardware. For instance, if a customer is prompted to upgrade their subscription to the partner\u2019s product, Ozlo could take a portion of that transaction.<\/p>\n Patil told TechCrunch the company is already in discussions with other sleep and meditation apps, but this closed-loop feedback system could be used with any sort of content, including therapy or even audiobooks.<\/p>\n Ozlo is also working on tinnitus therapy tools to address the ear-ringing problem that affects 15% of its customer base. The company teamed up with Walter Reed Hospital last year to launch a clinical study of the problem and found that playing the right masking frequency overnight for many weeks can fool the brain into stopping the irritating signals producing the ringing sounds.<\/p>\n Patil says the tinnitus therapies will be available via a subscription and will roll out in the second quarter of 2026.<\/p>\n Ozlo is also working to expand the insights it provides its own customers, and AI is an increasingly important piece. The company launched Sleep Patterns within its app in November<\/a> to help customers understand how long and well they\u2019ve slept, what their patterns are across the past weeks, and what factors could be disturbing their rest.<\/p>\n This year, Ozlo plans to introduce an AI agent that customers can text with and use as a \u201csleep buddy.\u201d (The company revealed the \u201cbuddy\u201d name for its AI agent in an Easter egg within the app. The app displays an animated character \u2014 \u201cbuddy\u201d \u2014 that runs across the top of the screen when you open and close the case five times in a row.)<\/p>\n By integrating with other wearables and Apple\u2019s HealthKit, Ozlo will be able to better understand a user\u2019s patterns and what they need to sleep better. It also wants to be able to connect with IoT devices, like smart thermostats, to set the right sleeping temperature for users as soon as they open the case at night.<\/p>\n The AI features are expected in the second quarter. <\/p>\n Ozlo\u2019s next-generation case will address the issue of the earbuds sometimes not being properly seated in the charger.<\/p>\n \u201cWe changed the contours inside the case \u2014 when you place [the sleepbud], it\u2019s perfect. And then we\u2019ll have a Bluetooth button to do the pairing,\u201d Patil says. <\/p>\n Plus, the new device will include a redesigned antenna and extender for improved range, and will add an amplifier to boost how loud the headphones can be to drown out plane and train noise, when needed. This updated hardware will also arrive in Q2.<\/p>\n In terms of products, Ozlo will launch a bedside speaker in Q2 that will offer similar functionality to the Sleepbuds, but won\u2019t need to go in the ear. A 4\u00d76-inch speaker would also have its own sensor, allowing it to do things like tracking how many times you woke up for bathroom breaks, or alert others if you had fallen.<\/p>\n The speaker would allow the company to market to families with children under 13, as kids aren\u2019t advised to wear earbuds at night. It could also make sense for elderly individuals who aren\u2019t as technically savvy and don\u2019t want to fiddle with in-ear devices. <\/p>\n Like the popular Hatch alarm clock<\/a>, Ozlo is working on adding a light to a product in the future to gently wake you up. (The time frame to launch is still being determined.)<\/p>\n Acquisitions are also part of Ozlo\u2019s growth strategy. <\/p>\nHow Ozlo\u2019s platform ambitions begin <\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/ozlo_calm.webp?w=680\")
<\/figure>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/imgi_5_BH-ANNIE_SELECT_still_export_0040-Edit_1.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nAn AI to help you sleep better <\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_0660.jpg?w=680\")
<\/figure>\nNew hardware, EEG insights on the way<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-09-at-12.26.39-PM.jpg?w=680\")
<\/figure>\nThe acquisition play<\/h2>\n