Alif Semiconductor Now Sampling BLE and Matter Wireless Microcontroller with Neural Co-Processor for AI/ML Workloads

The Balletto Bluetooth MCU family was announced by Alif Semiconductor in April 2024, and the company is now sampling its development kit, the DK-B1, to enable rapid prototyping of products that require ultra-low power Bluetooth Low Energy or 802.15.4 wireless connectivity. The MCU is also the world's first BLE/Matter solution to feature a DSP engine and an NPU for efficient hardware acceleration of AI/ML workloads.

The Consumer Technology Association (CTA) released the 2023 US Consumer Technology Ownership & Market Potential (OMP) Study, showing that despite complex economic times, 84% of US households plan to purchase tech products in the next 12 months. Mobile and wireless tech products lead the categories of tech products consumers want to buy. A notable trend is the fact that ownership of wireless personal audio products now exceeds wired devices.

Sometimes it's important to react quickly to users' feedback and improve a product that doesn't deliver. Sennheiser - or better said Sennheiser Hearing, the consumer division of Sonova - has managed to quickly update the important range of TV Sound products from the famous German brand. The new Sennheiser true wireless TV Clear Set 2 transmitter and earbuds are now updated with a new transmitter and earbuds, full bandwidth audio, smart customizations in the companion app, and simplified setup.

DSP Group, Inc., a leading global provider of wireless chipset solutions for converged communications, has announced the acquisition of privately owned SoundChip SA, a leading supplier of active noise cancellation (ANC) technology, engineering services, design tools, and production-line test systems for headsets. The acquisition combines SoundChip’s proven capabilities in hybrid ANC with DSP Group’s SmartVoice advanced low-power voice processing platform, algorithms, and mixed-signal expertise to streamline the delivery of cutting-edge wireless and true wireless stereo (TWS) headsets, from concept through to manufacturing. DSP Group’s technologies have recently been adopted by Google, Panasonic, and Technics in their latest TWS headset models.

Another company has launched a new attempt to break the full-wireless earbuds challenge. This time, French start-up PKparis launched the K’asq Bluetooth 4.1 stereo wireless earbuds, featuring the industry’s longest battery life: 5-hours on-the-go to listen to music or calls. The PKparis earbuds also combine high quality sound with up to -40% noise reduction, anti-fall system and IP55 waterproof and a clever USB 2.0 chargebox providing 8 hours extra charge.