The MINIMAL design and engineering team harnessed our collective experience creating wearables and audio products for some of the best and brightest in consumer electronics to produce the first-ever AI 'hearable' running headset.

Our biggest challenge was designing a robust wear style that performs like an athletic product but also looks good outside of the gym. It was a unique challenge to create something that could do both incredibly well. The one-size-fits-all configuration integrates Vi's technology and sensors, while striking the perfect balance of ergonomics and performance. 

With most headsets, earbud and cable management can be a mess. We addressed this issue by placing magnets in both Vi’s earbuds and the headset. This solution also allows for dual wear styles and storage options. 

For quick stow away during a workout, the earbuds can snap to each other and comfortably hang on your chest pendant style, eliminating loose cables. The earbuds can also snap to the tips of the headset for sleek storage and easy transport. Concave and convex surfaces on either ends of the earbuds and headset serve as a subtle queue for placement, making it impossible to attach the earbuds to the wrong side. It’s a small but useful detail.

Working quick and dirty in the shop has its benefits. It was critical to refining Vi’s form and tuning the ergonomic fit. Countless prototypes and models were developed, and through many rounds of tweaks and iterations, a simple universal form was born. Every prototype had to pass a run test, finding the balance between stability and long term comfort. The final ergonomic prototype was molded out of flexible urethane with a non-slip texture, which looks and feels as close to the real thing as you can get without manufacturing it.

Originally launched on Kickstarter with a goal of $100K, Vi captured nearly $1.7M from more than 7,200 backers worldwide, making it the most successful fitness wearable on Kickstarter to date.