In partnership with Microsoft, Soundcore is becoming a key entry point for Anker's AI strategic layout.

From "Listening" to "Interaction": The Evolution of AI-Driven Headphones

In the current era of increasingly saturated smart hardware, headphones, as devices with "extremely small size but high-frequency usage," are becoming the next big trend in AI applications.

At the just-concluded Microsoft Build 2025 Developer Conference, Anker Innovations, as the only Chinese brand at the conference, conducted an on-site demonstration. Its audio brand, Soundcore, showcased the existing achievements and future blueprint of AI-enabled audio devices.

At the conference, the open-style Bluetooth headphones Aerofit 2 (Feiyue Line Air), as a cooperation case, broke down language barriers by integrating multi-language real-time interaction functions such as face-to-face translation and simultaneous interpretation, expanding the usage scenarios of headphones from "listening" to "communication" and "understanding."

In addition, Anker Innovations announced that it will deepen cooperation with Microsoft to jointly develop the next generation of smart headphones equipped with generative voice AI dialogue capabilities, which also marks its important layout in the smart voice terminal track.

Anker Innovations Appears at the Microsoft Build 2025 Developer Conference

Anker Innovations' 2024 annual report shows that the revenue of its smart audio and video business reached 5.692 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 32.84%. Among them, its audio brand, Soundcore, played a core strategic supporting role.

Looking back at Soundcore's development history, founded in 2017, in just eight years, it has leaped to become one of the top three brands in global wireless headphone shipments. Undoubtedly, it is a rising star in the audio and video industry. Currently, according to relevant data from Soundcore, its global user base has exceeded 52 million. In addition, Soundcore has won many international authoritative awards such as CES, German iF, and Red Dot, becoming one of the representatives of Chinese audio brands making breakthroughs in the international high-end market.

Traditional headphone competition focuses on "sound quality" and "noise reduction," while Soundcore has completed a paradigm shift in advance and entered the new era of "AI voice interaction," becoming one of the first audio manufacturers in the industry to deeply integrate large model technology. Compared with AI headphones on the market that only support voice wake-up or simple Q&A, Soundcore focuses on higher-level voice understanding and multi-round interaction capabilities, and is reconstructing the interaction logic of headphones. Its goal is no longer limited to optimizing the listening experience but is positioned as an entry point for users' AI intelligent assistants, supporting a series of high-frequency efficiency scenarios such as schedule management, route navigation, and meeting summaries.

Soundcore Aerofit 2 (Feiyue Line Air)

This strategic path not only expands the role boundary of headphones in consumer electronics but also represents Anker Innovations' first-mover advantage in the integration of software and hardware and the commercialization of AI. Soundcore's technological investment and product definition are helping it seize the high ground in the next round of transformation in the smart audio industry.

Starting from the "First Principles," Product Innovation Begins with User Experience

AI technology injects a smart "soul" into headphones. However, Soundcore's hardware advantage is the foundation of all this. In terms of R & D, as of the first quarter of 2025, Soundcore has accumulated 741 authorized patents, including several core audio technology patents. In terms of sound quality, noise reduction, and comfort, Soundcore has built a solid technological barrier.

Soundcore's self-developed coaxial dual-unit technology can achieve coaxial transmission of high and low frequencies, with balanced three-frequency performance, bringing high-fidelity sound quality with stronger spatial sense and higher detail restoration. The full-scenario intelligent noise reduction system actively identifies environmental noise through algorithms, adjusts the noise reduction curve in real-time, and optimizes the user experience.

The open-style headphone field has always had pain points such as "insufficient low frequencies," "easy entry of noise," and "poor ear shape compatibility." Soundcore has broken through the dilemma with systematic design: through precise speaker customization, cavity structure, and adjustable wearing component design, it maximizes the improvement of acoustic performance. At the same time, it introduces a lightweight liquid silicone material to improve the comfort of long-term wearing.

Five Technological Breakthroughs of Soundcore

Soundcore's R & D logic always takes the "first principles" as the core, returns to the essential needs of users, and continuously innovates in the two dimensions of industrial design and acoustic tuning. Through the realization of dual values of functional satisfaction and emotional resonance, it builds user recognition.

Facing the increasingly complex and diverse market demands, Soundcore has found a breakthrough in scenario-based insight and technological innovation ability. Its iconic products, such as the AeroFit2 headphones with AI translation technology, the Sleep A20 sleep headphones equipped with an intelligent sleep monitoring system, and the AeroClip ear clips that define sports headphones as fashionable accessories, have successfully stood out in the global market with their differentiated product positioning, which proves Soundcore's precise control ability over the needs of niche markets.

Soundcore Product Matrix

Dual Focus on Acoustic Technology and Intelligent Interaction

Nowadays, artificial intelligence technology has brought new growth opportunities to the headphone business. The Soundcore brand undertakes the mission of R & D and innovation of intelligent terminal devices and has become the core fulcrum for Anker Innovations to expand into the field of AI terminal ecosystems. In the next stage, Soundcore will focus on two aspects: intelligent interaction and acoustic technology.

In terms of acoustics, Soundcore focuses on multi-dimensional spatial audio technology, precise sound field modeling, and personalized sound quality optimization, aiming to achieve the ultimate performance of sound restoration. At the same time, it introduces the reinforcement learning ability of large AI models, dynamically tunes the headphone sound effects through deep learning algorithms, accurately identifies the audio needs of different scenarios, and optimizes the sound quality performance in real-time. Whether it is music playback, environmental noise reduction, or voice interaction, Soundcore products are constantly breaking the limits of sound perception.

On the other hand, Soundcore will focus on the field of intelligent interaction. Through in-depth integration of artificial intelligence technology, it will create a voice assistant that can understand context and emotions, and expand more AI functions to improve personal life and work efficiency, such as converting recordings into summaries, etc., promoting a comprehensive breakthrough of smart wearable devices in multi-scenario coverage, multi-functional integration, and user value dimensions.

The future audio hardware will no longer be just a "listening" tool but an important bridge for users' information flow and emotional communication.

In this process, Anker Innovations hopes to attract more talents with both creative spirit and technical ability, who understand algorithm models and have a user mindset, and can use technology to shape the ultimate innovative experience of products.

"First principles, pursuit of excellence, and common growth" are Anker's values. Anker believes that people who are willing and dare to create have these characteristics:

First principles: Being able to put aside surface phenomena and deeply explore the essential needs of users

Pursuit of excellence: Having the courage to face challenges and finding ways to create long-term and globally optimal value

Common growth: Adopting a long-term perspective, having a sense of public interest (considering the interests of the team), and being willing to continuously learn and evolve

Anker's core concept is to give back the created value to every creator. According to the data disclosed by Anker, in 2024, the company distributed a total of 800 million yuan in bonuses to 2,000 employees through an incentive mechanism, and about 10% of the employees had an annual income of more than 1 million yuan.

Anker hopes to build a "four-have" platform of "opportunity, growth, reward, and meaning" for every creator, so that everyone can find their own value and sense of achievement here and get due rewards.