The Humane AI Pin, launched in April, has been experiencing a significant setback as the product has reportedly seen more returns than sales from May to August, leading to a crisis for the company.
What Happened: The AI Pin, priced at $699, has been met with overwhelmingly negative reviews. By June, only around 8,000 units hadn’t been returned, reported The Verge, citing a source with direct knowledge of sales and return data.
As of Thursday, the number of units still in customer’s hands was closer to 7,000, and the device’s daily returns have outpaced purchases, according to the report.
Humane is currently trying to stabilize its operations and maintain confidence among staff and potential acquirers.
Reports suggest that HP is considering purchasing the company, and Humane is negotiating with its current investors to raise debt, which could later be converted into equity.
The startup’s spokesperson, Zoz Cuccias, disputed the accuracy of the report. In a statement to The Verge, the spokesperson particularly disputed the financial data but did not provide any specifics.
Humane did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s request for comments.
After the report was published, tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee shared it on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, and said, “Shoutout to everyone that watched the review and still decided to buy one anyway.”
Brownlee has previously deemed Humane’s AI pin as “the worst product” ever reviewed by him.
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Why It Matters: Humane has been facing challenges following the lackluster reception of its AI hardware product.
Earlier, it was reported that the company, founded by former Apple executives Imran Chaudhri and Bethany Bongiorno, has been exploring a sale, with potential buyers seeking a sale price between $750 million and $1 billion.
The aforementioned low sales figures are starkly contrasted by the more than $200 million Humane has secured from prominent Silicon Valley executives, including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Photo courtesy: Humane
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