Contributed by Emma Tracy
At Eight Sleep, we believe sleep is the foundation of human potential. Our mission is to elevate that potential through world-class sleep technology backed by rigorous, human-centered research.
Join us on our mission by becoming a member of our active research community to help shape the future of sleep.
Key Takeaways
- Eight Sleep Labs is our research community of members working alongside us to accelerate innovation in sleep science and its impact on human health.
- Anyone can apply, become a member by filling out this quick survey.
- Members receive monthly invitations to join a variety of studies with different levels of involvement.
Eight Sleep Labs is a community built to understand and improve how humans sleep, recover, and perform
Eight Sleep Labs is the engine behind everything we build, from the Pod to our most experimental ideas. Since forming Eight Sleep Labs, nearly 20,000 members have participated in more than 50 studies, helping us accelerate innovation and deepen the scientific understanding of temperature-based sleep optimization.
As a member of Eight Sleep Labs, you may test early prototypes, contribute to new features, or help us explore entirely new dimensions of sleep science. Some studies involve filling out a survey and take just a few minutes. Others include coming into one of our labs in the United States for a few hours, or testing unreleased technologies overnight from the comfort of your own bed.
Every data point helps refine and elevate the sleep experience for thousands.
Joining Eight Sleep Labs is easy, anyone can apply
Apply to Eight Sleep Labs by filling out this quick survey. Your application will be reviewed, and upon consideration of the requirements, you may be emailed about upcoming participation opportunities:
- Receive an email invitation that includes a summary of an upcoming study. If it interests you, you’ll complete a quick screening survey to confirm eligibility. From there, we sort through eligible participants and invite them to the next stage.
- Review the details. Before you are enrolled, you’ll look over and sign an informed consent form that outlines what the study involves, any requirements, and how your data will be used and protected. Depending on the study, you may also be asked to sign non-disclosure agreements for the protection of confidential business information.
- Meet the research team. Once you’re confirmed for a study, you’ll attend a live onboarding session with a Research Associate who will walk you through setup, any equipment you’ll be using, and how to complete the study tasks.
Each study is new and different, you get to pick the type of study and involvement that interests you
Most studies include brief morning check-ins plus study-specific tasks, like cognitive tests, logs, or lightweight sensors, designed to help us understand how sleep drives human performance. While each study is unique, they usually fall into one of these four goals.
1. Validation Testing
Validation Testing is our most established research workflow. It has a consistent goal to confirm the accuracy of core signals like heart rate, HRV, respiratory rate, and presence detection (when you are in/out of bed). We often run these studies on new Pod versions we’re developing.
What participation may look like:
- You may test a prototype Pod or accessory while wearing a gold-standard reference device such as a Polar heart rate monitor (Figure 1) or a home sleep test system (Figure 2). We compare the two data streams to verify accuracy before any product reaches members. After a few nights with the reference devices and a 6-month observation phase, you may get to keep the prototype depending on the study.
Figure 1. Screenshot from the Polar H10 product listing on Amazon.
Figure 2. Screenshot from the YouTube video “Zmachine Synergy Patient Instructions [OFFICIAL VIDEO]”
2. New Feature/Product Development
From snore mitigation features to pillows to supplement blends, every product development study looks a little different, but the goal is always the same: make it outstanding before it ever reaches you. Every design decision is backed by real member data and feedback.
What participation may look like:
- We put prototypes in your hands and learn from your data. Many studies include something called A/B testing, where you try two versions and tell us which one you prefer and why. It’s how we created our most comfortable pillow, our quietest adjustable base (Ultra), and our most effective supplement formulas.
- For the supplement study that designed Sleep Elixir, participants A/B tested two different blends (Figure 3) over three weeks with the first week as a baseline period (Figure 4). Each day included a quick survey to track caffeine intake and note any abnormal behaviors, plus a cognitive test once a week. We paired sleep data with daily feedback to understand which formulas improve sleep and next-day performance.
Figure 3. Supplement materials provided to participants, including color-coded weekly organizers used during testing.
Figure 4. Example supplement study schedule showing baseline, supplement periods, break days, and cognitive testing checkpoints.
3. Exploratory Studies
During exploratory studies our goal is to understand how the Pod impacts your health in everyday life.
What participation may look like:
- Most of these studies involve comparing how your sleep and cardiovascular recovery are modified by using the Pod’s temperatures. This can mean two things: either participants who are brand new to the Pod complete part of the study before their very first night, or experienced members spend up to one week with temperatures completely off (a true sacrifice for science!).
- Between the temperature-on and temperature-off periods, protocol tasks have included everything from monitoring glucose levels, recording nighttime hot flashes, and measuring core and skin temperatures (Figure 5). These measurements help us understand the thermal impact the Pod has on your body.
Figure 5. An example from a study using nickel-sized skin temperature sensors placed on the forehead, chest, and foot to capture how the Pod influences temperature changes across different areas of the body during sleep.
4. Long-Term Research
Some insights only emerge over months or even years. Our goal for these long-term studies is to understand foundational sleep patterns, long-term health outcomes, and improve systems like Autopilot.
What participation may look like:
- These studies are typically low-lift, most of your involvement happens only when a task is due. We’ll check in occasionally with a quick survey, a scheduled assessment, or a simple activity tied to emerging trends in your data.
- You might complete tasks like push-up tests, perceptual surveys, or brief lifestyle check-ins, but otherwise your role is straightforward: sleep on the Pod as you normally do while it collects the long-term insights that help us uncover meaningful health patterns over time.
Our research reaches the broader scientific world through journal publications, conference abstracts, and podcast interviews
Every contribution, whether a quick survey or a multi-week feature test, directly shapes the future of intelligent sleep technology. We’ve published peer-reviewed work, including our MDPI Journal article on how the Pod improves sleep and cardiovascular recovery. We also present peer-reviewed abstracts at major conferences like SLEEP and ACSM, featuring findings on menopausal hot flashes (LBA 1665), sleep hygiene improvements driven by the Pod (LBA 1664), Autopilot on cardiovascular impact, predicting snoring, improved cognitive function, and mood.
You’ll also hear our science team on leading podcasts, where we discuss temperature regulation, recovery, and women’s sleep health, from Why Midlife Women Struggle with Sleep to How Women Can Sleep Smarter and Get Better Rest and The HUGE Impact of Temperature on Sleep.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I join?
Complete this quick survey to apply to the research community.
Who can join?
Anyone 18+; some studies may have specific requirements.
Do I need to own a product?
No, though many studies require a Pod 3 or newer.
How many study types can I pick?
As many as you’d like.
Is participation voluntary?
Always.
Is there a cost?
No. Some studies require product ownership.
International members?
Welcome, but many studies require U.S. residence for shipping.
Will I sign an NDA?
Depending on the study, this may be required.
Early access?
Often, depending on the study.
How often are invitations sent?
Up to twice per month.
Study duration?
Typically 1-2 weeks; long-term studies may include weekly tasks.
Compensation?
Yes, details included in the study invite.
Can my partner join a study with me?
Absolutely. When you sign up for a study, we will often ask for you to provide your partners contact information.
Who runs Eight Sleep Labs?
Eight Sleep Labs is led by our Research & Development Clinical Team. If you’ve taken part in a study, you’ve likely met one of us already. Our team is based in Boston, Massachusetts, and includes Research Associates who run the studies day-to-day, Data Engineers who process and organize incoming data, Data Scientists who analyze the data, and our Director of Science & Research, who guides the scientific strategy that keeps Eight Sleep at the forefront of sleep innovation.
Figure 6. This photo shows the Clinical Team. From left to right, Megan Holm, Nicole Moyen, Emma Tracy, Elias Malek, Bree Wilhite, Kendra Dombroski, Emma Cary, Natasha Ragland, and Sofie Jacobsen.
Data Handling and Privacy
Can I see my data?
Yes, available upon request.
What is an IRB?
An IRB stands for Institutional Review Board. It is a group of reviewers who examine and approve a study plan before research begins to ensure subjects are protected throughout the study. You can think of them as study participant advocates. IRB review is done across scientific fields for any clinical research using human subjects. Our women’s health, supplement, snoring, and sleep apnea studies have all undergone extensive IRB review.
How is my data protected?
Each person receives a subject ID, and all study data is tied to that ID, not your name or any other identifiable information. Only trained research staff can link your ID to your identity when needed. We collect only the information required to run the study, such as contact details, basic demographics, and shipping information if materials need to be sent. This information is kept confidential to the extent allowed by law.
Research findings may be shared on our website, social media, at conferences, or in peer-reviewed journals, but all results are aggregated and de-identified. You will never be personally identified in any publication.
Will Eight Sleep Labs provide me with a medical diagnosis?
No. We do not diagnose medical conditions. All physiological data collected is used strictly for research purposes. If you have any health concerns, please contact a medical professional.
Some studies may use third-party devices that produce optional reports (e.g., respiratory or sleep architecture summaries). These come directly from the device manufacturer and can be shared with your healthcare provider if you’d like clinical interpretation.
