Tired of 3 a.m. wake-ups sweaty or freezing, Bengaluru techie builds “AI roommate” that watches him sleep to auto-adjust fan speed

A software engineer from Bengaluru has built a smart ceiling fan that changes speed automatically based on how he sleeps, turning a nightly discomfort into a clever home-tech solution.

Smart ceiling fan that changes speed automatically based on how you sleep

The innovator, Pankaj, under the handle @the2ndfloorguy, wrote on the social media platform X that the project stemmed from restless nights.

“I was tired of waking up at 3 am either sweaty or freezing," he wrote explaining that it pushed him to design a setup that could interpret his body movements while asleep.

Rather than depending solely on room temperature readings, he built an AI system that tracks his posture through the night.

If his arms or legs stretch outside the blanket, the system assumes he is feeling hot and switches the fan on. Interestingly, if his limbs are tucked in, suggesting he is cold and the fan turns off.

The arrangement runs on a MediaPipe pose detection model connected to a Raspberry Pi home server.

A camera records his sleeping position, and the model evaluates joint movements to decide whether cooling is needed.

It then sends signals to control the ceiling fan accordingly.

Calling it his take on a “real smart home," Pankaj kept the explanation simple.

A photo accompanying his post showed a basic bedroom scene with digital markers highlighting body joints.

On-screen text reading “FAN_ON ratio=2.32" illustrated how the system converts posture data into actionable commands.

Though the hardware setup appears minimal, it demonstrates a practical and personalised use of AI.

i was tired of waking up at 3 am either sweaty or freezing. so i taught my ai roommate to automatically control the fan by watching me sleep 📸

arms or leg sticking out means i'm hot so fan turns on, arms curled up means i'm cold so fan turns off. it uses a remote button pusher… https://t.co/WYkbbcVoVHpic.twitter.com/slpENOzX9I

— Pankaj (@the2ndfloorguy) February 20, 2026

Netizens respond

The post soon drew widespread attention online, with users praising the creativity behind the idea.

“Best use of free will,” commented a user.

“Your AI roommate does more for you than most actual roommates,” said another person. 

“No way you built this. This is soo cool if this actually works wtf,” said another user.

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