This Robotic Pillow Mirrors Breathing Patterns to Help You Sleep

Robots vacuum our homes, keep seniors company, entertain us in Pixar movies … and now, they’re helping us sleep. The Somnox sleep robot is a robotic pillow designed for cuddling that mirrors the breathing patterns of deep sleep in order to lower your stress and help you drift off. 

Before you fall in love with this sweet, helpful robot, we should mention that it costs about $600, so it will have to remain a dream to many of us for a while. It does come with a 30-day trial period, so you can make sure it really works for you before you commit to the cost.

With its bean shape, the sleep robot is perfect for spooning (so if you sleep with a partner, you’re the little spoon now). The shape is also meant to encourage healthy alignment, not straining your neck or shoulders. Its removable cover is washable up to 140 degrees Fahrenheit. 

While you cuddle your sleep robot, it monitors your CO2 levels to determine whether you’re awake or asleep, according to designboom, which goes on to explain the sleep robot this way:

“It then uses this information to automatically adapt its own breathing rates to the user’s, gradually lowering this rate over time. It is based around research that calm breathing relaxes the amygdala — the fear center of the brain — making it less sensitive to stress hormones.” 

The sleep robot can also make soothing sounds, from white and pink noise to lullabies to all kinds of ambient nature sounds. It is connected to an app, so you can customize its sounds, rhythm, and more to match your preferences. 

In a sleep test conducted last year, 90% of participants said the sleep robot helped them fall asleep faster, and 70% believed they experienced better-quality sleep. It has not yet undergone a clinical trial, but Somnox says it plans to make that happen in the next few years in the hopes that the sleep robot could be covered by insurance if it’s shown to have clinical benefit.