No apps, no screen, only voice & hand motions: Humane unveils its Ai Pin at $699

What is the Ai Pin?

The device has two pieces – a computer and a battery booster. The battery booster powers a tiny battery that is inside the main computer, and this is how it achieves a whole day’s battery life. This allows users to swap the battery anytime when they exhaust the battery life. In the words of the makers, this is a perpetual power system that allows users to run their Ai Pin for as long as they want.

For privacy, the device does not have any wake words hence it is not listening or recording always. Essentially, it doesn’t do anything unless the user engages with it. The engagement on the device comes with voice, touch gestures, or the laser ink display. The device also comes with its own connectivity built right into its Humane Network which is connected by T-Mobile. It runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset which makes it an incredibly fast device. For notifications, it comes with a beacon to let users know whenever it has something for them such as messages from contacts or the delivery status of food or cabs arriving.

It is to be noted that the device does not have any apps, Humane’s OS runs on AI experiences that are on the device and on the cloud. According to the makers, the OS understands the user’s needs and picks the right AI to perform the function. This is remarkable as users will no longer search, download apps or manage them. This is also because the AIs involved are streamed on demand at an astounding speed.

How do use the Ai Pin?

During the product demo one of the founders, Imran Chaudhri showed how the device can play music from voice commands and the player’s controls are projected onto the palm of his hand. To play the next or previous tracks, it only took Chaudhri a few simple motions such as tilting the hands to the sides, and to return to the home screen he simply had to close his palm.

When it comes to cameras, the Ai Pin comes with an ultrawide RGB camera, depth sensor and motion sensors. It also has a special speaker that creates a bubble of sound that can be really ‘intimate or loud’. Another facet is the Trust Light, an indicator built directly into the Ai Pin’s hardware via a dedicated privacy chip. The Trust Light indicates when its input optical and audio sensors are active ensuring full transparency and data security. The Ai Pin also prevents it from being exploited which means if it is physically tampered with, it would require restoration from Humane to restore its functions.

Charging the device is simple. The Ai Pin comes with a charging case which can hold the entire device along with a battery booster. It is powered by the USB-C and is rugged and easy to carry. The device starts at $699 and comes with the Ai Pin, Charge Pad, cable and adapter, charge case and an extra battery booster. As part of the $24 subscription, users will get access to Humane’s Suite of AI-Powered services with zero limits on queries they can pose. Users will also get unlimited text, talk, data and a dedicated cell phone number for the device. It will be available for pre-order in the US from November 16. The company is yet to reveal its plans to launch the device in other territories.

Much before its launch, the futuristic device turned heads at the Paris Fashion Week, when supermodel Naomi Campbell wore it on her lapel during a ramp walk. Chaudhri had also demonstrated the device during his TED Talk following which it created a buzz.