EU filings revealed today that Apple has acquired a company called Sonera, makers of wearable-centered technology that sounds like it’s from the future.
Apple acquires Sonera, whose technology reads brain activity by measuring magnetic fields
Apple is a secretive company that often doesn’t disclose its acquisitions. But under the EU’s Digital Markets Act, certain acquisitions have to be disclosed publicly on the EU’s website.
Today the latest addition to that site is Sonera, a company that “is developing a chip-based magnetic sensor.”
Here are more details, per a Sonera press release from 2023:
Sonera has developed a new sensing modality that non-invasively measures magnetic fields generated by the body, in contrast with the electrical sensing techniques commonly used today. This proprietary technology holds the key to making brain activity as easy to measure as heart rate, temperature, and other physiological signals, and enabling data-backed insights related to movement, health, thoughts, and emotions.
The press release, first discovered by MacRumors, mentions an S1 chip which could “enable an entirely new class of consumer wearables and experiences based on muscle activity.”
Sonera’s proprietary approach “measures magnetic fields produced by the electrical currents from neural activity” and thus bypasses the need for direct skin contact.
Top comment by Currentinterest
There are certain environmental conditions that make thinking one thing more likely than thinking another. It's not the thoughts which determine our behavior. It is those conditions that determine our behavior and those thoughts that are said to describe it. Such a device could pick up on the brainwave changes reflected by the conditions which also produce certain thoughts. Accordingly, devices could be operated simply through changes in the magnetic fields generated by the conditions which produce thought or other brain activity. This is a system which could actually result in true telepathic communication. Many safeguards will be required, but it will be interesting to see how it develops.
It’s unclear how much progress Sonera has been able to make since that 2023 press release. But clearly, Apple found something of value in their technology.
The ability to read brain activity through measuring magnetic fields sounds like it could be the premise for a new Apple TV sci-fi series. But it’s easy to see lots of potential as Apple pushes further into wearables, and enhances its wearable products with AI.
What do you think Apple might use Sonera’s technology for? Let us know in the comments.
*Buy iPhone with 15% discount from Apple refurbished
Best iPhone accessories
- AirPods Pro 3 (now only $199, down from $249)
- MagSafe Car Mount for iPhone
- 10-year AirTag battery case
- 100W USB-C fast charging power adapter
- AirTag 2 (now only $79 for 4-pack, down from $99)
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Comments