Poor sales lead to Ai Pin’s price slash
In a post on X, the official Humane account posted a promotional video of the Ai Pin, and stating that the price starts at $499, rather than the original $699.
Humane’s mailing list received an email from the company, saying: “Ai Pin starts at $499 and includes your first month of Humane Plan on us. Along with a 90-day return window, it’s completely risk-free to try.”
The $499 “eclipse” edition, which is crafted from matte black anodised aluminium, does not include an additional battery or charging case. The exclusion is understandable, as the company advised Ai Pin users to avoid the charging case after discovering that some battery cells from a supplier may pose a fire safety risk.
While an extra battery is available for purchase at $69, owning the AI Pin also comes with an ongoing cost. Despite the lower upfront price for the device, users must still commit to the monthly $24 subscription.
The Ai Pin launched earlier this year and received poor reviews.
In his review of the pin, YouTuber and tech reviewer, Marques Brownlee, commented: “This thing is bad at almost everything it does, almost all the time” and dubbed it “the worst product I’ve ever reviewed.”
In a review posted by The Verge, David Pierce said: “The AI Pin is an interesting idea that is so thoroughly unfinished and so totally broken in so many unacceptable ways that I can’t think of anyone to whom I’d recommend spending the $699 for the device and the $24 monthly subscription.”
Since this launch, Humane has released updates to the device’s CosmOS software to add missing features and improve the product. However, in August, it was reported that returns of the Ai Pin had began to outpace sales, which left only 7000-8000 of the gadgets in people’s hands.
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