The 10 most incredible inventions of 2021 + one more (part I)

The 10 most incredible inventions of 2021 + one more (part I)

Antonio Vizcaíno, DMM & Co-Founder

Nov 4, 2022

The future is coming, and you may not know it yet, but these 10 other amazing inventions were made in 2021 and you can acquire them now.

A speaker that stays charged by your shower

If you’re like us, you love listening to music in the shower. It’s a great way to get your day started, but it’s hard to find a speaker that’s waterproof, portable, and sounds good.

However, now there’s an amazing new invention on Kickstarter that might just be the solution we’ve been waiting for: Ampere’s Shower Power speaker. It’s capable of generating energy and storing it, thanks to the water coming out from the shower. With this invention, you can listen to music for up to  14 hours thanks to its built-in battery, without having to plug the speaker into the mains. Oh and a fun fact, it’s made entirely from ocean plastic!

“There’s one place in the house where it’s hard to get good sound: the shower,” say the inventors of this project, which is on Kickstarter. “Existing waterproof speakers are not enough. That’s why we’ve created a speaker you’ll love to use in the shower—every day.”


Walk around and charge your phone

Our phones are getting bigger, but the amount of time we spend watching videos on social media makes them run out of power very quickly. We also know that the battery always runs out at the most inopportune moment, for example, when you are in the street and there is no charging point nearby. The Spanish startup Dynamove has a solution to this problem: piezoelectric power.

Continuing on the path of renewable energy, a portable battery that charges with the pressure exerted by your feet when you walk could revive your cell phone, freeing you from the need to look for a plug at the Starbucks around the corner.

The idea came into place in 2016 from three graduates of University Carlos III (UC3M). Inspired by their professor, who believed that energy could be generated through mechanical resistance, —such as that produced between your foot and the ground when you walk— they decided to try to put it into practice.

The result was a small square piece of plastic with a piezoelectric crystal inside, that vibrates under pressure from your feet and produces electricity.


Test your poops for unhealthy habits

Time to get smart about your toilet! Toto, the market leader in smart toilets, has just released their newest product: the Wellness Toilet. This toilet analyzes your bowel movements with help from “multiple state-of-the-art detection technologies” to determine your mental and physical state, according to a statement from the Japanese company.

The beauty of this technology is that it doesn’t require you to alter your routine or wear strange devices attached to your body, but simply do what you always do: go to the bathroom. “People and toilets have unique touch points not found anywhere else: skin and human waste,” Toto says. “The Wellness Toilet is in direct contact with the skin of the individual who sits on it, and analyzes the waste they deposit: a treasure trove of information can be gleaned from fecal matter.”

With the help of an app, this smart toilet can provide information to users about their state of health and is even able to detect unbalanced diets and suggest changes to your eating habits.


Translate what your dog says

Have you had a conversation with your dog? Do you think he or she knows how to talk? If so, then you’re not alone. Many people believe that their pets are very smart,  but if you’re one of those people who say “the only thing missing is talking,” Petpuls Smart Collar is the invention you need for your pet.

We know that you usually have no problem understanding your dog, but all of us, including them, are a bit more complex, and it never hurts to have them explain in detail how and what they feel. This collar developed by a Korean startup can detect your dog’s emotions through its barking and classifies them into five different states: Happy, Angry, Lonely, Excited, and Scared.

The technology is simple and is based on the comparison with the collected samples. When the dog barks, the bark is compared with 10,000 samples taken from 50 different breeds (including yours) after which the owner receives on their smartphone via an app the information about what emotion was expressed during the barking session by their four-legged friend.


This desktop robot will become your best friend

Have you ever wanted a companion who can understand your mood and react to the things that are happening in your life?

Eilik is an interactive desktop robot that takes human-robot emotional interaction to the highest level. This android companion is designed to cheer you up and help you to relax when you are working or studying. He can also be used for fun, or simply to have him by your side anywhere in the house.

Equipped with artificial intelligence, Eilik reacts to touch, vibration, lights, weather, and other stimuli. According to Energizelab: “He has a bunch of facial expressions to let you know how it feels both physically and emotionally.” It moves its arms and head. It can also turn itself on and make sounds.

He responds to touch by becoming happy when you pet his head or laughs if you tickle his belly to express four different moods: normal (white circle), happy (blue circle), angry (red circle), or sad (green circle).

This robot’s personality evolves depending on the interactions you have with it. If you treat it with affection, it will be happier; if you tease it too much it will become naughty.