S Poddar
Humane, the ambitious artificial intelligence startup behind the AI Pin, is closing down its hardware division and selling most of its assets to HP for $116 million. The firm announced today that it was ending its much-hyped but ultimately failed experiment in AI-enabled wearable technology.
Existing customers who have already bought an AI Pin will be able to utilize the device until February 28, 2025, at 3 PM ET. After this date, the AI Pin will no longer be able to access Humane’s servers, essentially making most of its core features unusable. Based on a support document published by the company, functions like calling, messaging, AI-driven queries, and cloud storage will no longer work. Users are being asked to save their photos, videos, and notes prior to the shutdown, as all content stored will be erased permanently once Humane’s servers shut down.
Some offline functionality will still be available even after the shutdown. Battery level indication will still function, but any feature that needs cloud connectivity, such as voice interactions, AI-driven responses, and access to Humane’s.Center platform, will be disabled permanently.
For consumers looking to get their money back, refunds are only for AI Pins that were within the 90-day return period from the date of their initial shipment. Refund claims should be made by February 27, 2025. Also, anyone who paid for a Humane subscription that runs past February 28 will get a prorated refund. Customers who were due a replacement charging case as a result of the previous recall will also receive a refund for the part of their initial purchase that included the Charge Case subsequent to the shutdown date.
HP’s buyout comes with Humane’s patented operating system, CosmOS, and its large portfolio of patents, with more than 300 patents and patent applications. The acquisition also adds much of Humane’s technical talent to HP’s ranks, an indication that HP can use the firm’s technology and know-how to drive future AI innovations.
Humane initially debuted the AI Pin with a high-profile onstage demonstration at TED, creating widespread interest but also doubts. The launch campaign included a reveal video that had to be revised due to a major inaccuracy. When the AI Pin officially hit the market in April 2024, it was met with overwhelmingly negative reviews. Tech reviewers criticized its performance, with The Verge’s David Pierce stating that “it just doesn’t work,” while MKBHD went even further, calling it “the worst product I’ve ever reviewed.”
After the disappointing reception, Humane started looking for a possible buyer, valuing itself at as much as $1 billion. But the sale price announced today of $116 million indicates that the company was having difficulty locating a willing buyer at its initial valuation. August 2024 reports showed that AI Pin sales were being surpassed by daily returns, prompting a price reduction in October in a bid to increase customer numbers. Even that price cut, however, was not enough to reverse the fortunes of the struggling product.
Humane was a startup with great promise in the AI wearables category, started by former Apple executives who envisioned phasing out smartphones in favor of a screen-free AI assistant. Humane’s creative vision drew investment and the attention of the tech world, but execution killed the company. Whereas the AI Pin was designed to be a voice-controlled, hassle-free substitute for conventional mobile phones, actual use revealed fundamental flaws such as inconsistent AI responses, sluggish processing, and a general absence of useful functionality.
HP’s move to buy Humane’s technology indicates that the computing giant believes in the startup’s software and intellectual property, although its hardware did not catch on. It is unclear how HP will incorporate CosmOS and Humane’s AI know-how into its own product offerings. With HP’s dominance in the PC and enterprise spaces, the technology may be repurposed for new AI-based applications beyond the consumer wearables market.
Humane’s closure is yet another warning story in the rapidly changing AI space. The idea of an AI-driven wearable assistant is still interesting, but the failure of Humane is a testament to the difficulty of getting such a far-reaching vision to market. With HP assuming its assets, Humane’s future is now contingent on how well HP can consolidate and build on it into its own pipeline.
