UltraSense Systems and Partron have signed an MOU to develop user-interface technologies for AI wearables and smartphones, combining ultrasound-based sensing with product engineering and manufacturing capabilities. The collaboration targets touch-on-metal and solid-state interfaces as device makers explore new ways to interact with increasingly AI-driven hardware.
UltraSense Systems and South Korea-based electronics company Partron are teaming up to develop new user-interface technologies for AI wearables and smartphones, targeting an emerging hardware market where conventional buttons and touchscreens may not always fit the form factor.
Under a memorandum of understanding announced September 21, the companies will combine UltraSense’s ultrasound-based sensing platform with Partron’s product engineering, integration and manufacturing capabilities. The agreement establishes a framework for joint development, customer implementation and commercialization opportunities worldwide.
The immediate focus is on UltraSense’s touch-on-metal and solid-state interface technologies. These systems are designed to enable touch and other forms of interaction through device surfaces rather than relying exclusively on conventional mechanical controls.
UltraSense’s Touch on Metal technology uses ultrasound to detect finger touches on conductive surfaces such as metal and carbon fiber. The company says its modules can incorporate ultrasonic sensors, light guides, LEDs and a flexible circuit substrate, allowing the sensing assembly to be attached directly to a surface.
That capability could become more relevant as AI moves into smaller and more unconventional hardware. Smartphones already provide large touchscreens for interaction, but emerging devices such as smart glasses, rings, earbuds and other wearable computers have considerably less surface area for conventional controls.
IDC’s latest wearable market data shows the scale of that transition. Global wearable-device shipments reached 145.7 million units in the first quarter of 2026, up 4.3% year over year. Smart glasses were among the fastest-growing emerging categories, with IDC forecasting 13.6 million units for the full year, a 41.4% increase from 2025.
IDC separately reported that display-less smart glasses shipments rose 167% year over year in the first quarter of 2026 to approximately 2.25 million units. The research firm expects the category to reach 27.3 million units by 2030.
The growth creates an interface challenge. AI wearables can provide voice-based interaction, cameras, microphones and other sensors, but users still need physical ways to initiate commands, control functions and receive feedback. Smaller devices also leave less room for buttons, switches and traditional touch interfaces.
UltraSense is positioning ultrasound sensing as one way to address that problem. The company’s broader Ultrasound Intelligent Platform combines ultrasound sensing, custom ASICs, embedded processing, firmware and sensor-fusion algorithms. Its technology portfolio is designed to support touch, force, proximity, gesture and haptic feedback through software-defined solid-state interfaces.
The Partron agreement adds a manufacturing and commercialization layer to that technology. Partron operates across sensors, camera modules, antennas, RF components, advanced packaging and system-in-package technologies, and provides OEM/ODM services spanning design through mass production, according to its and UltraSense’s company materials.
Under the MOU, Partron will support global customers with product-design integration, manufacturing and deployment as programs move from early development into commercialization and high-volume production.
That distinction matters for component technologies targeting consumer electronics. A sensing technology can demonstrate technical feasibility without necessarily being ready for the manufacturing, reliability, integration and supply-chain requirements of a mass-market device. Combining the technology developer with an established product-engineering and manufacturing partner is intended to shorten that path, although the MOU itself does not announce a specific commercial product or customer program.
The companies are also positioning the collaboration within the broader Physical AI trend. UltraSense has previously expanded its ultrasound technology beyond consumer interfaces, including a tactile-intelligence platform aimed at robots and intelligent machines. The company says that platform is designed to give Physical AI systems touch perception alongside existing sensing modalities.
For AI wearables, the interface problem is somewhat different. Rather than enabling robots to physically manipulate objects, the objective is to make interaction with an intelligent device feel natural while preserving the constraints of a small, mobile form factor.
Voice interfaces will remain important, but physical interaction can provide another control mechanism. A discreet touch surface on a wearable could allow users to trigger an AI assistant, control media or acknowledge an action without speaking. Proximity or gesture sensing could potentially add additional interaction modes without requiring a display.
The market is also becoming more competitive. IDC reported that audio or display-less glasses accounted for 70.3% of XR headset and glasses shipments in the second quarter of 2026, while display glasses represented 14.3%. Total XR headset and glasses shipments grew 35.3% year over year during the quarter.
That expansion puts pressure on device manufacturers to differentiate not only through AI models and sensors but through how those capabilities are accessed. The interface can become part of the product architecture rather than simply a software layer.
UltraSense and Partron have not disclosed specific devices, customers, production volumes or commercial launch dates under the new agreement. The companies instead describe the MOU as a framework for future joint development and commercialization.
For the AI hardware ecosystem, the partnership nevertheless highlights an increasingly important category: interface technology designed specifically for devices in which AI is continuously present but traditional screens and controls are not.
As smart glasses and other AI wearables move toward broader adoption, sensing technologies that can fit into compact surfaces could become an important part of the physical interface between users and AI systems.
Market Landscape
AI wearables are creating demand for interaction models that go beyond conventional smartphone touchscreens. IDC forecasts smart-glasses shipments of 13.6 million units in 2026, with the category growing to 27.3 million by 2030.
The competitive opportunity therefore extends beyond AI assistants and processors into sensors, power management, acoustics, cameras, haptics and human-machine interfaces. For smaller devices, interface components must operate within tight constraints around size, power consumption, durability and industrial design.
UltraSense’s ultrasound-based approach targets this interface layer, while Partron brings integration and manufacturing capabilities. The MOU does not yet specify a commercial product, so its near-term significance is primarily as a development and commercialization framework rather than a confirmed device launch.
Top Insights
- UltraSense and Partron will explore ultrasound-based and solid-state interfaces for AI wearables and smartphones.
- UltraSense’s touch-on-metal technology uses ultrasound to detect interaction through conductive surfaces such as metal and carbon fiber.
- Partron will contribute product integration, engineering, manufacturing and deployment capabilities for customer programs.
- IDC forecasts 13.6 million smart-glasses shipments in 2026, highlighting growing demand for compact wearable interaction technologies.
- The MOU does not disclose specific customers, devices, production volumes or commercial launch dates.
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