Intel Debuts the ‘Smart Shirt'

Tech company Intel may not have created Google Glass or a computer watch, but now it has something new, the "smart" shirt.

Intel's debut in wearable computers is a shirt with sensors that will be perfect for runners or cyclists, according to the Wall Street Journal. Intel's chief executive Brian Krzanich showed up at the Re/Code's Code Conference Wednesday wearing the new shirt -- and also showed a new DIY robot kit made from pieces from a 3-D printer priced at $1,600.

“We missed the tablet. We missed that transition,” Krzanich said in an on-stage interview. “Robots are coming,” Krzanich said, “like it or not.”

The battery-powered smart shirt was made with partner AiQ and will be sold this summer. No price was given. “Right now we think you want to take the battery out before you wash it,” he said. “We can build devices where you can go into the water.”
Intel supplies the chips for the shirt, but not the sensors, but that may change. “We are buying the intellectual property and we are just now going through the determination of what do we want to build inside," he said. “We will build some sensors.”
 
Intel did miss out on Silicon Valley's mobile revolution, but by jumping into the market with a new wearable device, it may at least gain some notice. However, a "smart" shirt seems to us to be a harder sell than a computer wristwatch or attachment to glasses.
Contact Us