Plaud’s new earphones come with an eSIM-enabled case for talking to AI agents

Hardware companies have realized that note-taking is one of the easiest AI use cases to build for, and consequently have been busy shoving mics into everything from pendants and rings to credit-card-sized pucks and wristbands. Still, despite the variety of devices, only a few companies have been able to stand out.

One of these companies is Plaud, which has over 2.5 million people using its hardware or software. It is now launching a note-taker in a new form factor: earphones. Called Plaud One, these adopt the simple bare-bones style of Apple’s Airpods, and can record calls, while their case can be used to record in-person conversations or take notes.

Plaud isn’t the first to this form factor. Its rivals Viaim and Anker already have similar note-taking earbuds in the market.

But the company is betting on its software and AI chops to set these apart. Plaud said that once the earbuds transcribe your conversation, its AI agent — which can connect to tools like Gmail, Google Calendar, Notion and Slack — can do things like writing follow-up emails and creating documents or presentations based on the contents of the conversation.

By itself, that isn’t a unique pitch. Software note-takers like Granola, Fathom and Read AI have been offering similar workflow automation for a while now, transcribing calls and conversations, and allowing you to subsequently get an AI agent to do various tasks.

The Plaud One takes that a step further, though, with its case, which supports an eSIM card. That feature, the company says, allows users to instruct Plaud’s AI agents remotely without using their phone or computer.

The Plaud One has 12mm drivers and features active noise cancellation. The company says the case can capture voices clearly within a range of five meters, and the earphones can record six hours of in-person meetings and three hours of calls on a single charge. Combined with the case, users can record up to 25 hours of conversations on a single charge.

Buyers get 300 minutes of free transcription per month, after which they will need to buy additional plans, which start from $8.33 per month (paid annually).

That said, this launch seems to be more of a trial run. The Plaud One will be limited in quantity, as the startup likely wants to gauge demand for such AI-focused earphones before it commits to the format.

Plaud is also working on building agentic capabilities, which is expected to arrive as part of an update in the coming months. The company says it will introduce a credit-based system for different tasks, and buyers of the Plaud One will get $200 in credits for these tasks.