Vibe Watch

Vibe Watch is a wearable, tactile control surface designed for AI-assisted “vibe coding.” Developed for the M5Stack Global Innovation Contest 2026, the device moves frequent AI interactions off desktop monitors and onto a dedicated wrist-worn controller.

Dedicated Hardware for AI-Assisted Workflows

When running multiple AI agent sessions simultaneously, monitoring background tasks and context-switching across desktop windows quickly fragments attention. Vibe Watch tackles this by placing active agent states directly on the wrist. Instead of tabbing back to a terminal or searching through windows, developers can track active tasks at a glance, make approve or reject decisions using physical buttons, and trigger voice input without leaving their flow.

Inspired by dedicated coding hardware devices like the OpenAI Codex Micro, the design combines a circular display with tactile pushbuttons, motion graphics, audio cues, and haptic feedback into a focused human-AI interface.

Dual-Layer Interface

The interface is organized into two primary operational modes:

The Agent Layer

The primary view arranges six live agent indicators symmetrically around the perimeter of the circular display. Host-driven state changes communicate background activity using distinct colors, brightness levels, and animations. A spring-physics selection ring allows quick navigation between active agent sessions.

The Action Layer

Pressing both physical hardware buttons switches the device into the Action layer, offering rapid tactile controls:

• FAST: Initiates an expedited execution mode.
• NG / OK: Provides reject and approve controls, mapped to physical buttons and accented by distinct audio and haptic feedback.
• PLAN: Toggles architectural planning mode with an immediate state change.
• AI: Calls the primary AI assistant.
• Center Microphone: Serves as a hold-to-talk control for voice input.

The physical left button is color-coded orange to trigger NG (No-Go / Reject), while the blue right button maps to OK (Approve). Visual on-screen rails extend from the button edges to reinforce hardware-to-software mappings.

Multisensory Feedback and Integration

Rather than serving as a basic macro pad, Vibe Watch integrates display motion, audio synthesis, haptics, and inputs into a coherent interaction model:

• Approval (OK) triggers an ascending square-wave chime, while rejection (NG) outputs a descending phrase.
• Bluetooth pairing and agent status changes deliver distinct tactile vibration patterns.
• Onboard device settings allow customization of audio volume, haptic intensity, and state-change alerts directly on the watch, with values preserved across reboots.

Hardware Implementation

The project runs on an off-the-shelf M5Stack StopWatch without requiring auxiliary controller boards:

• ESP32-S3 MCU: Drives graphics rendering, configuration storage, battery monitoring, and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE HID) communication.
• 466 × 466 Round Touch Display: Hosts the radial 6-agent layout and tactile touch targets.
• Dual Tactile Buttons: Enable physical, eyes-free decision making.
• Buzzer and Vibration Motor: Supply synthesized sound cues and haptic patterns.
• Rechargeable Battery: Powers untethered wireless operation.

To make the round StopWatch wearable, the official rectangular Watch Mount Accessory from the M5Stick series is adapted. The plastic retaining clips are removed to produce a flat mating surface, bonded to the rear casing using high-strength double-sided tape, and secured with a nylon strap.

Building and Pairing

The firmware is developed using PlatformIO on the Arduino framework with ESP32-S3 support, using M5Unified, NimBLE-Arduino, and ArduinoJson. Once flashed over USB, selecting a device slot and initiating pairing in the watch’s onboard settings exposes the controller as a standard BLE HID device to the host development environment.