Lego just made what it claims is its most important product release since it introduced minifigures in 1978. No, it’s not yet another brand franchise. It’s a computer in a brick.
Called the Smart Brick, it’s part of a broader system called Smart Play that Lego hopes will revolutionize your child’s interaction with Lego.
These aren’t your grandma’s Lego bricks. The 2×4 techno-brick houses a custom ASIC chip that Lego says is smaller than a single Lego stud, measuring about 4.1mm. Inside are accelerometers, light and sound sensors, an LED array, and a miniature speaker with an onboard synthesizer that generates sound effects in real time, rather than just playing pre-recorded clips.
How the pieces talk to each other
The bricks charge wirelessly on a dedicated pad and contain batteries that Lego says can last for years. They also communicate with each other to trigger actions, such as interactive sound effects.
This is where the other Smart Play components come in: Smart Tags and Smart Minifigures. The 2×2 stud-less Smart Tags contain unique digital IDs that tell bricks how to behave. A helicopter tag, for example, might trigger propeller sounds.
There’s also a Neighbor Position Measurement system that detects brick proximity and orientation. So a brick might do different things as it gets closer to a Smart Tag or Smart Minifigure, for example.
The privacy implications of Smart Bricks
Any time parents hear about toys communicating with other devices, they’re right to be nervous. They’ve had to contend with toys that give up kids’ sensitive personal data and allegedly have the potential to become listening devices for surveillance.
However, Lego says its proprietary Bluetooth-based protocol, called BrickNet, comes with encryption and built-in privacy controls.
One clear upside is that the system doesn’t need an internet connection for these devices to work, and there are no screens or companion apps involved either. For parents weary of reading about children’s apps quietly harvesting data, that alone will come as a relief.
Lego also makes specific privacy assurances. Yes, there’s a microphone in the Smart Brick, but no, it doesn’t record sound (it’s just a sensor), the company says. There are no cameras either.
Perhaps the biggest relief of all, though, is that there’s no AI in this brick.
At a time when “AI-powered” is being sprinkled over everything from washing machines to toilets, skipping AI may be the smartest design decision here. AI-driven toys come with their own risks, especially when children don’t get a meaningful choice about how that technology behaves once it’s out of the box.
In the past, they’ve been subjected to sexual content from AI-powered teddy bears. Against that backdrop, Lego’s restraint feels deliberate, and welcome.
Are these the bricks you’re looking for?
Will the world take to Smart Bricks? Probably.
Should it? The best response comes from my seven-year-old, scoffing,
“Kids can make enough annoying noises themselves.”
We won’t have long to wait to find out. Lego announced Lucasafilm as its first Smart Play partner when it unveiled the system at CES 2026 in Las Vegas this week, and pre-orders open on January 9. The initial lineup includes three kits: Tie Fighters, X-Wings, and A-Wings, complete with associated scenery.
Expect lots of engine, laser, and light sabre sounds from those rigs—and perhaps a lack of adorable sound effects from your kids when the blocks start doing the work. That makes us a little sad.
More optimistically, perhaps there are opportunities for creative play, such as devices that spin, flip, and light up based on their communications with other bricks. That could turn this into more of a experiment in basic circuitry and interaction than a simple noise-making device. One of the best things about watching kids play is how far outside the box they think.
Whatever your view on Lego’s latest development, it doesn’t seem like it’ll let people tailor advertising to your kids, whisper atrocities at them from afar, or hack your home network. That, at the very least, is a win.
We don’t just report on data privacy—we help you remove your personal information
Cybersecurity risks should never spread beyond a headline. With Malwarebytes Personal Data Remover, you can scan to find out which sites are exposing your personal information, and then delete that sensitive data from the internet.