Founders Update #36
Michael here! I have awesome news to share this week.
Michael Byrne May 02, 2025 2 min read
Thank you to everyone who raised their hand to join us.
The Bía Beta Program is officially full - all 500 spots have been claimed. I’ve personally reached out and confirmed with everyone who was selected from the waitlist.
Hundreds of you expressed interest, and trust me, we wanted to bring everyone along. However, we want to make sure we have time for everyone. Beta customers will be asked to complete the following surveys:
- First Look: What are your first impression of Bía the moment you took it out of it’s packaging?
- Fit & Feel: What do you think about the fit, fabric, and comfort? This is where we dial in the design.
- Sleeping: Tell us how your night went. We want all the realness — the good, the bad, and everything in between.
- Durability: Let us know how Bía is keeping up with your busy lifestyle.
Afterwards, Beta customers will have the opportunity to book a 15-minute call with one of the Founders directly.
Travel Case ✈️
Just 3 days after kicking off the request, our travel case manufacturer hand-built the very first structural sample without steel molds or tooling, just structure to see what's possible. While it’s only a proof of concept, and it’s wild to see it come to life this quickly.
There’s still work ahead to make it perfect. We need to dial in the form, finish, and feel to reduce the bulk while also keeping it comfortable to use as a pillow. But it’s a strong first step.
If you’re thinking about building something familiar, like a handbag, or piece of luggage, I would recommend reaching out to manufacturers with your designs - it may come to life quicker than you think!
For Bía, there is no template a manufacture can follow. We’re doing something that has never been done before: interfacing advanced sensors and electronics with soft goods in a way that's comfortable, elevated, and easy-to-use.
Visiting the R&D department of our bone-conduction drivers was incredibly eye opening. We spent an entire day scientifically measuring the frequency response of the drivers we selected and applying equalizer settings to ensure that the sound comes out well balanced even through the foam.
We’ve worked closely with our manufacturers to ensure everything from foam and fabric to silicone and adhesives are clean, neutral, and scent-free. No off-putting coatings. No mystery smells.
But there’s one part that’s still a work in progress: the packaging.
Even when the product is scent-free, the packaging itself can produce a new-in-the-box smell. That's why we’re factoring in time to off-gas before sealing each unit, as well as exploring ways to actively absorb any lingering scents such as activated charcoal.
We're really happy with the progress. The app is much more than a remote for Bía - it's a dedicated sleep coach in your pocket. We have a full-range of features including deep dives on statistics, science-backed experiments, sleep habit tracking, and much more that we'll talk about at a later time.
We've taken all your feedback and put it all together on our website as a dedicated FAQ.
