If there’s one company that’s truly embraced the ChatGPT/AI era, it’s Humane, a secretive startup built by a super team of ex-Apple employees, including co-founders Imran Chaudhri and Bethany Bongiorno. The company, which has been drip-feeding teasers and mission statements over the past four years of its first-ever consumer product, is set to unveil the “AI Pin,” tomorrow. The time of the launch event remains unknown.
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What’s a little more clear is how much the screen-less AI wearable will cost and what some of its surface-level features are, thanks to documents obtained by The Verge. Supposedly, Humane’s AI Pin will cost $699, a little less than the flagship smartphones the company has sought to replace with its hand-projecting, voice-powered device. But wait, there’s more.
The AI Pin will also require a $24 monthly “Humane Subscription” to access cellular data via T-Mobile’s network (with a phone number in tow), cloud storage for photos and videos, and unlimited queries of its voice assistant that leverages AI models from Microsoft and OpenAI.
At a TED Talk in April, Humane’s Imran Chaudri demoed how the AI Pin could project a caller ID when there was an incoming call, among other nifty features like summarizing your day’s worth of emails and identifying foods and their nutritional values. With the device expected to be powered by GPT-4, the AI Pin will be able to tap into several AI tools to help you throughout the day. That’s in contrast to how we rely on different apps on our phones.
The Verge also reports that the AI Pin’s operating system will be called Cosmos, and the device will ship with two magnetic clips that double as battery packs. Humane calls them “Battery boosters” and they’re meant to keep the wearable latched onto your shirt or other surfaces as it projects pertinent information onto the palm of your hand or scans your surroundings for context-based questions. When one battery dies, you can simply swap in the second one for a quick revival.
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Some other leaked details on the AI Pin include its built-in “personic speaker,” the ability to connect to Bluetooth headphones (the omission of this would be a big head-scratcher), a “Trust Light” that emits whenever the wearable is recording audio or video, and a built-in touchpad for physical inputs.
We’ll learn more about the wearable’s functionality, battery life, and exactly how Humane decides to pitch its future of mobile computing during the official unveiling tomorrow. Stay tuned to ZDNET for more.
