Humane — the maker of one of the most poorly received gadgets in recent years — will have its assets acquired by HP, the company revealed on Tuesday. The deal is worth $116 million, according to a Bloomberg report, though Humane has not confirmed this detail. The same news outlet reported last year that Humane was seeking between $750 million to $1 billion from a prospective buyer.
In a post on its website, Humane said it’s “winding down the Ai pin as we are moving onto new endeavors,” adding that it will share more information about its plans later.
Humane launched the AI Pin a year ago, touting it as a groundbreaking wearable device designed to harness the full power of artificial intelligence. The intriguing gadget had no display, relying instead on voice prompts, and beaming words and images onto the palm of your hand.
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It cost $699 and required a $24-per-month subscription to access all of its AI services.
There was certainly a lot of buzz around the gadget, but it was a massive flop. The first reviews, which came out last spring, found that it fell well short of expectations, with limited, buggy functionality ruining the user experience. MKBHD shared a video about the AI Pin titled: The worst product I’ve ever reviewed … for now. Digital Trends described it as looking like “a miserable smartphone replacement.”
And now, following poor sales, Humane’s AI Pin is about to perish.
‘Winding down’
On an FAQ page posted on its site on Tuesday, Humane said that “effective immediately, we are beginning the process of winding down the consumer AI Pin.”
It said the AI Pin is no longer available for new purchases, and that from February 28 at 12 p.m. PT, the device will no longer connect to Humane’s servers.
At the same time, all customer data, including personal identifiable information (PII), will be permanently deleted from its servers.
Refunds
Humane said that if you have placed an order for the device but haven’t completed onboarding, your order will be automatically canceled, and yo’ll receive a full refund.
But it added that anyone who bought it more than 90 days ago will not be able to get their money back. As per the company’s website: “Refunds are only available for customers who are still within the 90-day return window from their original shipment date. You are eligible to receive a refund if your product shipped on or after November 15th, 2024. All device shipments prior to November 15th, 2024 are not eligible for refunds. All refunds must be submitted by February 27th, 2025.”
The news will come as a major disappointment to the early adopters who had been hoping that Humane would stick with the AI Pin, rolling out updates to improve it or even bringing out a second version, but it’s not to be. Humane can be praised for trying something new — it’s just a shame that it launched well before it was ready.