Some tech leaders see virtual assistants as the next phase of generative artificial intelligence — but one startup working on the idea is having a hard time selling it.
Humane, an AI startup founded by former Apple employees, is seeing more daily returns of its AI Pin than daily sales, The Verge reported, citing internal sales data. The company released the $699 pin in April and marketed it as a wearable smartphone alternative, handling similar tasks such as texting, calling, and taking photos and videos. However, the highly-anticipated pin was not well received, with influential tech reviewer Marques Brownlee calling it “the worst product I’ve ever reviewed.”
Humane has shipped around 10,000 of the AI Pins and accessories in four months, far less than the company’s goal of shipping around 100,000 of the pins in the first year, The Verge reported. But from May to August, Humane saw more returns than purchases of its pin. In June, 8,000 of the sold pins had not been returned, a person told The Verge. Now, the number of AI Pins still in possession of buyers has reportedly dropped to around 7,000.
Humane did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Since its release, the AI Pin and accompanying accessories have made Humane just over $9 million, according to internal data, however about 1,000 orders were canceled before being shipped out, and over $1 million worth of the company’s products have been returned. And despite a high rate of returns, Humane cannot refurbish the AI Pin, nor make money back by reselling the product, a person told The Verge.