In November 2023, with the ambition to disrupt the technology industry,Humane The company launched its first product—— Wearable AIAi Pin, the assistant, runs on Android and uses artificial intelligence models to answer user questions and display information on the user's palm through laser projection. It is designed to "replace smartphones" to complete daily tasks through voice control.
However, this product suffered a setback when it was first launched. In April 2024, Ai Pin was officially released, but users and reviewers who received the product pointed out that it had serious defects, such as extremely poor battery life, frequent overheating, slow response, and many software problems. The overwhelming negative reviews from the technology media made Ai Pin's situation even worse.
Bloomberg reported that in the face of Ai Pin's market cold reception, Humane seems to have made a difficult decision and is planning to seek an acquirer. According to people familiar with the matter, Humane is currently discussing a sale with financial advisors, with a valuation of between US$750 million and US$1 billion (currently about RMB 5.43 billion to RMB 7.24 billion).
Humane was founded by two former Apple senior employees, Imran Chaudri and Bethany Bongiorno. However, Ai Pin's high price of $699, the need for additional monthly subscription fees to maintain normal use, and the closed operating system (ComOS) all discouraged consumers. The defects of the product itself, the immaturity of the software, the high price and subscription fees have jointly led to the rapid decline of Ai Pin. Although it may only be a matter of time for a startup to be acquired by a giant, such a rapid decline is still quite surprising.