Nowatch can now actually tell you the time - and use AI to deliver daily recaps

After using last year's show to officially unveil its health tracker, Dutch startup Nowatch has returned to Las Vegas to launch a set of Chronos 'timepiece faces' and a new AI-powered Insights feature.

The move essentially turns the Nowatch, which arrived as a mindful tracker in the body of a traditional watch, into a de facto hybrid smartwatch.

It's all pretty confusing - especially when you learn late, like us, that Nowatch is actually pronounced 'now watch' and not 'no watch' - but the device that wasn't initially supposed to distract you now provides that option.

You can still employ a gemstone or metal disc on the front if you don't want the new time-telling function, and the company's core message is still the same. 

Nowatch is all about helping wearers become more present and aware of their daily stress, using an EDA sensor developed by Philips to spot spikes and drops in your responses throughout the day.

NowatchNowatch originally arrived with just metal or gemstone dials, like the one shown above.

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All this stress data, mixed with stats for your sleep and activity, will now also be tapped into by Nowatch's AI companion to help deliver daily summaries and recommendations based on your goals.

Unlike the more chatbot-style AI implementations we've seen from the likes of Whoop, Nowatch seems to indicate that the AI Insights feature will act a bit more holistically.

Users are also able to tailor the summaries and insights, customizing the tone and length of the feedback and tips to be more analytical, direct, and even more caring.

"Our AI-driven Nowatch Insights functionality stands apart by prioritizing thoughtful, high-quality responses over rapid, chatbot-style exchanges that only incentivize people to be on their phone more," says Nowatch CEO and co-founder Timothée Manschot.

On paper, these two arrivals do seem like a step in the right direction for the startup, but the Nowatch is still a pretty expensive package for what it offers.

The new Chronos interchangeable discs will be available in a white (€149) or gold (€169) dial from April, and are at least priced similarly to the gemstones and metal discs at checkout, but the total to get your hands on one is still around €600. 

We look forward to testing one out later this year and seeing whether it lives up to the asking price.