Tech Veteran Launches liko.ai to Bring Smarter Privacy-Focused Home Cameras
A New Vision for Home Security
Tech industry veteran Ryan Li is shaking up the smart home market with his new startup liko.ai, backed by major players including SenseTime and iFLYTEK. The company promises to deliver home cameras that actually understand what they're seeing - without compromising your privacy.
Solving Camera Pain Points
Today's home security cameras suffer from two major flaws that liko.ai aims to fix:
- Privacy risks: Most devices upload footage to the cloud, creating potential vulnerabilities
- Limited intelligence: Basic motion detection hasn't evolved much beyond its initial implementation
The solution? Keep everything local. "We process all video on the device itself," explains Li's vision. "Your living room footage should stay in your living room."
Smarter Than Your Average Camera
The company's secret sauce lies in its lightweight visual language model that runs directly on devices. Unlike traditional cameras that simply detect movement, liko.ai's system can interpret scenes semantically:
- Recognizing when a child approaches stairs unsupervised
- Identifying pets causing mischief
- Answering natural language queries like "Who entered the study yesterday afternoon?"
Building the Home AI Hub
liko.ai envisions its products becoming central hubs for home intelligence:
Edge Computing Power: Combines visual understanding with local processing chips Expandable Ecosystem: Future versions will connect with smart locks, lights and other devices Discreet Design: Products avoid the "security camera" look to blend into modern homes
The technical approach draws on Li's hardware expertise from building Meituan's ecosystem and leading Lexar Global.
Industry Backing Speeds Development
With support from SenseTime (computer vision specialists) and iFLYTEK (speech AI leaders), liko.ai expects rapid progress. Insiders hint at a mid-2026 launch targeting premium home security and childcare markets.
The $10 billion global home camera market hasn't seen fundamental innovation in years. As one industry observer noted: "We've had cameras that see - now we're getting cameras that understand."
Key Points:
- Former Meituan exec launches privacy-focused AI camera company
- Edge-based processing eliminates cloud privacy concerns
- Advanced visual models enable semantic understanding of scenes
- Backed by major AI players SenseTime and iFLYTEK
- First products expected mid-2026