There’s nothing like a good night’s sleep, but that’s easier said than done. Now, a high-tech headband and accompanying app are helping put some sleep problems to bed.
Israeli company NyX, co-founded in 2016 by Technion alum Ophir Orenstein, M.S. ’16, developed a comfortable, attractive headband that uses smart continuous-learning AI to automatically train your brain for optimum sleep. Other sleep aids use complicated training programs or things like guided meditation, said Orenstein, who is also the company’s chief technology officer. But NyX’s headband “talks” directly to the brain through neural signals. ”We cut out the middleman.”
The headband is fitted with undetectable EEG sensors that read and record the brain’s theta waves while falling asleep. Your brain needs 60% more theta waves than normal to fall asleep. If deficient, the headband uses tACS (transcranial alternating current stimulation) to help the brain achieve the natural pattern necessary to enter sleep. At the end of the night, the headband sends information to the wearer’s NyX mobile app, so the user can see how he slept. The headband tailors the brain stimulation to the individual, creating a system that induces and maintains a natural, deep sleep.
The headband showed lasting results when tested in 300 sessions on people with insomnia due to Parkinson’s disease, according to Israeli media, and is currently running a clinical trial at Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center. NyX, named after the Greek goddess of the night, won in the neuro-wellness area at the CES start-up competition in Las Vegas. The company hopes a commercial product will be available by prescription with FDA approval by the end of 2024.
Lack of quality sleep can contribute to health conditions such as stress, depression, memory, heart health, and more. As such, improving sleep quality can potentially improve wellbeing for an estimated 30% of adults, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Another Israeli company with Technion DNA, IntoSleep, is also using a techno “wearable” to help solve sleep problems. Co-founded by Technion graduate and serial entrepreneur Noam Hadas, IntoSleep is developing a thimble-like device for the finger that monitors biological markers such as respiration and heart rate, blood pressure, and skin temperature, to create a tailored sleep program for the user based on biofeedback. IntoSleep is not as far along as NyX.