New Airweave Mattress

Motokuni Takaoka thinks outside the box. The Stanford School of Engineering graduate took over his uncle’s floundering fishing-line company and turned it into one of the largest mattress brands in Japan.

Airweave mattresses are constructed of airfiber, a network of interwoven plastic — like a bundle of fishing line — which aids in temperature regulation, body support and the reduction of motion transfer. In 2016, it was the official mattress supplier of the United States Olympic Committee; it’s also the official bedding partner of the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Despite entering the U.S. market in 2015, it was met with little fanfare. “Too firm,” Americans criticized. The Japanese are accustomed to firmer mattresses because of traditional Japanese futons, Takaoka says. And he hopes to get Americans on the same page.

People can turn up to 30 times during a night’s sleep. On a soft mattress, that means exerting a significant amount of energy to move. A study published in 2018 found that people who sleep on Airweave mattresses produce on average 60 percent less muscle activity than when sleeping on memory foam.

To cater to American consumers, Airweave launched its New Airweave Mattress (yes, that is the official name), which reduced the density of its airfiber, making the mattress softer without compromising support. It also added a pillow topper to further soften the mattress.

“We found that [American sleepers] prefer a softer mattress, as there is a belief that ‘the softer, the better,’” Takaoka says. “That is understandable because it feels comfortable when you lie on something soft. However, you must remember that it’s not what you feel when you get into bed — it’s how you feel when you wake up.”

Specs

Warranty: 10 years

Sizes: Twin–california King

Thickness: 7.9 inches $1,400+