The Inhumane Pivot

For Imran Chaudhri and Bethany Bongiorno, the blind promise of AI illuminated that road. As their much-hyped AI Pin device hit the market last week, they soon faced disastrous reviews, and it became clear that Humane had lost its way. What happens if you succumb to the siren song of the AI hype train?

Forgetting Your Original Ambitions

Chaudhri and Bongiorno's story began nobly enough back in 2018. Both ex-Applers, with a wealth of experience in interaction design, dreamed of a technology that would foster genuine human connection rather than the compulsive, slot-machine engagement that smartphones had come to represent.

We were welcoming the era of digital minimalism. From the Light Phone with its e-ink display to custom Android mods that ruthlessly blocked social media, Humane saw an opportunity to make its mark.

The company name, Humane, said it all — this was technology with a soul that respected our fundamental humanity.

Resorting to LLM Silver Bullets, Cheaping out on UX designs

But then something changed, around 2022-2023. Humane's resolve wavered as the LLM-powered chatbot craze began sweeping the tech world last year.

After all, Humane seemed so tempted to jump on the generative AI bandwagon and proclaim it a panacea for all the ills of modern gadgetry. Suddenly, the AI Pin morphed from a noble stab at digital asceticism into an awkwardly positioned hybrid.