The Humane AI Pin was supposed to be a futuristic wearable that replaced your smartphone. But after a horrible product launch, the company is already looking to sell.
Former Apple employees Imran Chaudhri and Bethany Bongiorno founded Humane in 2018. Their vision: create a $699 AI-powered pin you clip onto your shirt.
The AI Pin aimed to be a voice-controlled assistant and portable computer. You could make calls, send texts, search the web and run other apps, all with voice commands or by projecting a touchscreen interface onto your hand using a built-in laser.
Chaudhri and Bongiorno raised $230 million from big names like OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Salesforce’s Marc Benioff. Before launch, the company was valued at $1 billion based on grand ambitions.
Employees Raised Red Flags That Were Ignored
From the start, Humane employees had concerns about the AI Pin that leadership ignored, according to reports. The laser pointer drained battery rapidly, causing overheating issues. For investor demos, staffers had to chill the device on ice packs.
The short battery life meant the AI Pin lasted just 2-4 hours per charge. Employees suggested delaying launch until improving battery optimization, but Chaudhri prioritized sleek hardware design over addressing flaws.
A senior software engineer questioning the April 2023 release date was fired for “violating policy by talking negatively.” Other frustrated workers resigned as feedback went unheeded.
Subpar Reviews: “The Worst Product I’ve Ever Reviewed”
When reviewers finally got the AI Pin in April 2023, their takes were universally terrible. Critics called the $699 device:
- “Totally broken” and having “glaring flaws”
- “More science project than finished product”
- “A party trick at best”
- “The worst product I’ve ever reviewed…for now” (Marques Brownlee)
Reviewers knocked the sluggish voice response, short battery life, heavy drag on shirt fabric, and hand gesture interface not working well.
Others said the laser projector caused overheating concerns about “wearing a hot pin” during use.
Despite a $24/month subscription fee, features like voice typing and translations were missing at launch.
Poor Sales Lead to $1 Billion Sale Attempts
After the abysmal reviews, the full extent of Humane’s troubles emerged. As of early April, they had received only around 10,000 orders for the AI Pin – a tiny fraction of their 100,000 unit sales goal for 2023.
At $699 per pin, that’s potentially just $7 million in revenue before subscription fees. An embarrassing start for a $1 billion pre-launch “unicorn.”
One week after launch, Humane began pursuing an acquisition by HP Inc for over $1 billion, banking on that enormous valuation. They also had casual talks with telecom companies as potential buyers, though no formal sale process began.
Humane brought on investment bank Tidal Partners to advise sale discussions. They also sought $1.1 billion in new funding to keep operating.
Product Defect: Fire Risk From Battery Case
As if the poor reviews and minimal sales weren’t enough, Humane told AI Pin owners this month to immediately stop using the charging case due to battery defects posing fire risks:
Out of an abundance of caution, we are reaching out today to ask that you immediately stop using and charging your Charge Case Accessory due to an issue with certain battery cells for the Charge Case Accessory.
Upon receiving a single report of a charging issue while using a third-party USB-C cable and third-party power source, we identified a quality issue with the battery cell supplied by a third-party vendor used in your Charge Case Accessory.
Our investigation determined that the battery supplier was no longer meeting our quality standards and that there is a potential that certain battery cells supplied by this vendor may pose a fire safety risk. As a result, we immediately disqualified this battery vendor while we work to identify a new vendor to avoid such issues and maintain our high quality standards.
The issue identified is isolated only to certain battery cells used in the Charge Case Accessory and is not related to the Charge Case Accessory hardware design.
Importantly, Humane’s Ai Pin, its Battery Booster(s) and Charge Pad are not affected as the disqualified vendor does not supply batteries or any other components of those Humane products, and are safe for continued use.
While we know this may cause an inconvenience to you, customer safety is our priority at Humane. We design Ai Pin and related accessories with safety top of mind, and rigorously test and certify them to applicable US and international safety standards.
We appreciate your understanding and will be providing you with two additional months free of the Humane subscription.
Rest assured we are committed to your safety and satisfaction and will share additional information when we have concluded our investigation.
The Humane Team
The faulty batteries were sourced from a supplier Humane has now “disqualified.” They’re working to find a replacement, offering customers two free subscription months as compensation.
For a startup that ignored feedback and fired dissenters, the wave of negative reviews was a wake-up call.
After launch, Bongiorno called the criticism “a gift” in an apparent shift, saying they now must “lean into painful feedback.” This contrasted with earlier reports of an environment punishing negativity.
Chaudhri and Bongiorno claim ambitious Humane plans remain intact despite the setbacks. “We just want to build,” Bongiorno stated, as they weigh options to fund further development like a sale.
Whether that sale materializes, or the AI Pin finds an audience through promised updates, remains to be seen. But the failure of Humane’s launch shows ignoring internal criticism during development can spectacularly derail even a billion-dollar vision.