SwitchBot's new gadget clips to your collar and records your conversations, so you'll never have to pay attention ever again

It's a little too Black Mirror for me

08 Jan 2026, 16:54 · TechRadar

News By Ruth Hamilton published 8 January 2026

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Prone to daydreaming in meetings? Awful at remembering what you've agreed to do? SwitchBot has a new gadget that could save you from getting fired / shouted out by your loved one.

The SwitchBot AI MindClip attaches to your collar and records all your conversations, then puts them all into a private, searchable database. I got a chance to check one out at CES 2026, where it's making its debut.

If you want to up the ante by using AI to turn that audio into summaries and to-do lists, there's a cloud-based subscription service that'll help with that. With that service, you can also ask AI to help you find a discussion you need to refresh yourself on the details of.

The AI MindClip is multilingual, with support for over 100 languages, and lightweight at just 18g. SwitchBot assures me there's end-to-end encryption for privacy.

(Image credit: Future)

Although I can clearly see its potential usefulness, it all feels a bit invasive and creepy to me. The name and the fact that SwitchBot is referring to it as a 'second brain' doesn't help, nor does the fact it's a literal Black Mirror episode brought to life.

In a work setting, with the MindClip positioned clearly on someone's collar, there's an argument this is kind of thing is perfectly appropriate. It's not that different from recording a video call.

But there's nothing to stop you using it for all your private conversations too, which is where we get into slightly murkier waters. Most people seem to immediately jump to its potential for checking exactly who said what, to settle arguments (the immediate response of the two journalists I was being shown around the CES booth with was, "Woah, my wife's going to hate this.") Plus, it can very easily be concealed.

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