Things Keep Getting Worse for the Humane Ai Pin
It has not been a great year for the Humane Ai pin. Pitched to the world as an AI-infused hologram-projecting phone replacement you could stick on your lapel, the wearable pin instead turned out to be a sad, bad little device. After months of hype, the Pin was finally released to widespread disdain from critics who cited an array of faults—like the fact that the $700 smart gadget lacked key features and overheated easily and that its touted projector simply wasn’t visible in daylight. Just a few weeks after the pin came out, Humane’s leadership was looking to sell the company off.
This week, that somber saga has gotten even worse for the weary wearable. The New York Times published a story detailing many of the messy, chaotic decisions behind the scenes at Humane that led to such a flawed product being released into the wild. Chief among the problems were that the company knew the battery didn’t last long and that the device’s laser display got so hot that staff had to put ice packs on it to cool it down. (A day before the NYT story came out, The Verge reported that Humane sent emails to its customers warning them to stop using the charging case that came with the pin because they’re at risk of catching on fire.) There’s also the fact that leadership didn’t listen to internal criticism that may have led to someone pointing out the myriad ways in which the device simply did not work. According to The Times, Humane sold roughly 10,000 devices, less than 10 percent of its goal for an initial run.
Wilson Audio is bringing back its iconic, Dalek-shaped WATT/Puppy speakers to exterminate your ears, your eyes, and your wallet. Originally designed in 1985 by company founder David Wilson as a way to replicate the sound of his custom studio speakers in a more portable arrangement, each of these shapely boxes packs four drivers into two stacked cabinets. The top part (the WATT) holds a convergent synergy carbon tweeter and a 7-inch alnico midrange driver, while the bottom part (the Puppy) holds a pair of 8-inch cellulose composite woofers.
