January 02, 2026 10:00 ET | Globenewswire
IRVINE, Calif., Jan. 02, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — AONDevices, Inc., a leader in super-low-power AI for audio and sensor intelligence, and InvenSense, a TDK group company and a global pioneer in sensor solutions, today announced a jointly optimized always-on voice and sound detection platform engineered for next-generation consumer and IoT devices. The platform combines the AON1100™ M3 high-accuracy, super-low-power Edge AI processor with the TDK T5838 digital microphone, which features high-performance, low-power, and Acoustic Activity Detection (AAD) functionality. Together, this solution delivers industry-leading accuracy with breakthrough energy efficiency.
At the heart of the architecture is the AON1100 M3, which performs high-accuracy wake word, voice command, and acoustic event detection entirely on-device. The AON1100 M3 intelligently orchestrates the system power flow to lower overall system power consumption. Unlike conventional DSP-based systems, which often sacrifice recognition accuracy when entering low-power modes, the AON1100 M3 maintains full inference performance at every stage.
The processor dynamically manages the microphone mode transitions, keeping the T5838 microphone in a 20 µA AAD listening state when idle. When the T5838 detects activity, it provides a wake signal. The AON1100 M3 immediately initiates full-accuracy, real-time inference at <260 µW. The system automatically returns to its ultra-low-power state when end of speech is detected by the AON1100 M3 – all without software intervention or performance degradation. This closed-loop power-management flow, designed and governed by the AON1100 M3, enables a true always-on audio interface with instant responsiveness, premium accuracy, and maximum battery life.
“This is where our super-low-power Edge AI architecture shines,” said Mouna Elkhatib, CEO & CTO of AONDevices. “The AON1100 M3 doesn’t just run AI at ultra-low power – it manages the entire sensing pipeline. By controlling the microphone and system flow at the hardware level, we eliminate the traditional trade-off between low power and high accuracy.”
TDK’s T5838 is a multi-mode, low noise digital MEMS microphone in a small package. The T5838 consists of a MEMS microphone element and an impedance converter amplifier followed by a fifth order Σ-Δ modulator. The digital interface allows the pulse density modulated (PDM) output of two microphones to be time multiplexed on a single data line using a single clock. The AAD edge processing feature offers programmable thresholds and filters with power consumption as low as 20 uA.
“Pairing our AAD-enabled T5838 microphone with AONDevices’ AON1100 M3 creates a tightly integrated platform for truly always-on voice and sound interfaces,” said Calin Miclaus, senior director, MEMs Microphones Products at InvenSense. “Together, we deliver an extremely low-power platform without compromising detection performance.”
The combined platform is optimized for wearables, hearables, smart remotes, home IoT devices, and other battery-powered products requiring hands-free control, acoustic awareness, and reliable real-world performance.
About InvenSense
InvenSense, a TDK group company, is a world-leading provider of custom sensing solutions for consumer electronics, industrial, and automotive applications. InvenSense solutions integrate MEMS and magnetic sensors, such as IMUs, accelerometers, gyroscopes, compasses, microphones, TMR, and ultrasonic time-of flight sensors, with proprietary algorithms and firmware that intelligently process, synthesize, and calibrate the output of sensors for maximized performance and accuracy. InvenSense solutions empower leading technology in smartphones, wearables, hearables, smart home, gaming, IoT, robotics, drones, industrial, automotive, and other applications. Headquartered in San Jose, California and with offices worldwide, InvenSense became part of the Sensor Systems Business Company of TDK Corporation in 2017. Learn more at https://invensense.tdk.com/.
