Startup Humane is looking for a buyer after AI Pin’s failed debut

The team apparently believes they’re worth between $750 million and $1 billion, despite the first product’s deep software flaws and hardware problems.

Humane, the startup behind the wearable artificial intelligence computer Pin, is already looking for a potential buyer for its business. According to a Bloomberg report, the company, led by former longtime Apple employees Imran Choudhry and Bethany Bongiorno, is «looking for a buyer for between $750 million and $1 billion».

According to a report from Bloomberg.

After the AI Pin debuted for $699, that could be a challenge: The device has received plenty of censure for slow response times and a user experience that doesn’t match the concept of a persistent wearable AI assistant promised by the founders. The product has been presented, at least in part, as a way for people to be more present and reduce their ever-increasing reliance on smartphones.

The product has been presented as a way for people to be more present and reduce their ever-increasing reliance on smartphones.

Humane has developed its own operating system called CosmOS, which is powered by Pin AI. It connects to a network of AI models to answer voice queries and analyze what the built-in camera is pointing at. In some interactions, the device emits a laser «beam» that is projected onto the inside of the wearer’s palm. A monthly subscription is required to keep the device active.

Monthly subscription required.

The Bloomberg report notes that Humane has raised $230 million from investors, including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who is rumored to be developing an unrelated product (in collaboration with legendary Apple designer Jony Ive) that could better demonstrate the potential of artificial intelligence.

Humane has raised $30 million from investors including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who is rumored to be developing an unrelated product (in collaboration with legendary Apple designer Jony Ive) that could better demonstrate the potential of artificial intelligence.

In 2023, Humane was valued at $850 million by investors, but that was before its first product was universally criticized by reviewers. It has some new and clever ideas, but the AI Pin’s software is underdeveloped and too inconsistent, and the hardware shows poor battery life and overheating issues. Humane has promised to address some of these bugs with firmware updates. Just last week, it released the OpenAI GPT-4o to further improve the device’s smarts.

Humane’s firmware update is now available for the OpenAI GPT-4o.

The list of potential buyers for Humane seems pretty small given the price the startup hopes to fetch. Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta* and Microsoft are making significant strides in AI — large language models and generative AI are becoming more prevalent by the day, — but it’s unclear how much of Humane’s intellectual property will actually be valuable to all of these companies.

Humane’s intellectual property will be valuable to all of these companies.

* Owned by Meta, it is recognized as an extremist organization in Russia and its activities are banned.