Pozio kickstarter campaign launches on the 2rd November

The Canadian company's line of products prevent eavesdropping by big data corporations.

There's just one week to go until the launch of the Pozio Kickstarter campaign, and early backers will be able to purchase the Pozio Cradle – with the Pozio dock set to become commercially available later in 2022.

The Pozio products use proprietary Listening Blockers and subsonic frequencies to prevent smart speakers and virtual assistants from listening to your every word. As such, the Pozio Cradle and dock can ensure that you aren't heard by your device until you want to be.

The young Canadian company claims that their line of products have been designed to safeguard consumer security from the murky intentions of big data corporations, and state:

Pozio is on a mission to provide trusted, arms-length control over devices that are always listening or watching our daily activities.

Pozio

Both Pozio devices can be used with existing smart speakers, including the Google Home Mini, and 2nd and 3rd generation Echo Dot – all of which fit snugly into the Pozio dock ($189–$199 CAD), regardless of whether you opt for the Mini or Tall variation. The Pozio Cradle ($199–$279 CAD), however, also doubles as a wireless phone charger and can even play music.

Plug-in privacy

The Pozio dock and Cradle utilize a simple design, and there's no complicated setup process or companion app necessarily. You're secured as soon as you plug in your dock and set your virtual assistant inside. Both Pozio devices remain on and render your smart speaker deaf until you decide otherwise.

Privacy advocates will appreciate how elegantly Pozio solves the issue of "always listening" smart devices via an audio perspective, rather than a more complicated, and potentially more vulnerable, technical approach or network solution. No prior tech knowledge is needed to use a Pozio dock or Cradle, and the device does not require an internet connection, does not store any data, and cannot be hacked or spoofed.

Smart surveillance

Smart assistants are always listening, regardless of whether you can tell or not, and have always endured criticism from privacy advocates concerned about data-hungry parent companies (like Amazon and Google) desensitizing us to the idea of having a voice activated, always-on device in our homes, cars, and pockets.

In 2019, Bloomberg reported that real humans were listening to users' audio recordings, and whilst Amazon has since allowed users to determine whether they want their recordings processed on their device (and not sent to the cloud, or Amazon's servers), the company's obsequious assistants and speakers contribute to a worrying normalization of domestic data-collection and surveillance. The adorable new Amazon Astro, in fact, even utilizes facial recognition.

Pozio devices allow us to decide whether we want this sort of insidious eavesdropping in our homes without giving up the obvious benefits that come with owning a smart speaker or virtual assistant.