The Controversy behind the Humane AI pin

Admittedly, I spend a lot of time on YouTube. Besides the usual funny videos, many channels offer educational and informative videos. I even started dabbling in learning to use Blender for 3D animation, and YouTube has been an invaluable resource to me.

One of the main things I use YouTube for is to watch tech reviews. Whether it is something I'm thinking about getting for myself or just an interesting piece of technology, these videos can be entertaining, if not informative.

One of my favourite channels on YouTube, MKBHD, has been involved in some controversy surrounding product reviews they published recently. MKBHD is one of the biggest tech channels on YouTube, with over 18 million subscribers. They do a lot of videos about technology, and that often includes product reviews.

Marques Brownlee, the person behind MKBHD, reviewed the Humane AI Pin. This device is a wearable AI assistant that seems to aim to replace your phone. It wants interaction with technology to be more natural and humane, thus the name. On the face of it, the device does seem like a good idea, and it reminded me of the Rabbit R1, a similar AI assistant device.

Marques published his video review of the device recently. After watching it, I thought it was a fair and well-balanced review; he pointed out the intention behind the Humane AI, the good and the bad points, and his own experience with it. His overall impression of the device was negative.

His video echoed many things I thought about Humane AI Pin. I didn't know much about the device before watching his review, but my general feeling was that it would be hard to get the Humane AI to become popular because of the form factor. I felt it was too far removed from the familiar technology with screens we can interact with. I compared it with the Rabbit R1 because that is the closest thing to it. The Rabbit R1 form factor is slightly different from smartphones, but it is close enough that I think people wouldn't mind trying it and learning how to use it day-to-day. On the other hand, interacting with Humane AI can be done through gestures either on the touchpad or through the small laser projector.

After watching Marques's review of the product, my main opinion about this product is that it is currently pointless. It does not have a clear purpose to exist as it is right now, and it feels like an incomplete product that the company pushed out too early.

The Humane AI Pin's supposed aim is to replace the phone and make our interaction with technology more 'humane' by making it easier for us to do what we need to without interrupting our lives too much. For it to do what it claims, it needs to have the same, or at least similar capability as our phones. Currently, the Humane AI Pin can't do some of the basic tasks we rely on our phones for, like setting an alarm. It lacks so many basic features. In opposition to its aim, most things that it does can be done more conveniently on a smartphone or a smartwatch.

Once again, I must compare it to the Rabbit R1 because of the similarity of supposed functionality. The Rabbit R1 can connect to many services like Spotify, Uber and others, which gives it the ability to do things such as control music, order food or even get an Uber for you in a possibly more convenient way than your phone. Privacy concerns aside, integration with other services makes it more helpful because it has more access, whereas the Humane AI Pin only has a few services it can connect to.

The main issue that I believe will affect the growth of the Humane AI Pin is the price. The base model is priced at $699 with a $24/month subscription. Yes, that's not a typo.

For this price, you can get a decent secondhand flagship smartphone that can do everything the Humane AI is aspiring to. The price is just too high. And what's with the subscription, you ask? Well, according to their website:

To use your Ai Pin, you’ll need a monthly subscription, which includes access to the Ai Bus, an unlimited wireless service plan, and cloud storage

You must purchase a monthly subscription in order to use Ai Pin. The Humane Subscription pays for your cloud data storage, access to Ai services, and a domestic cellular plan with unlimited talk, text, and data.

I understand the need for a subscription for cloud-based services. Using services and cloud storage is an ongoing cost that companies must cover, but... with the device costing $699 already, a $24/month subscription is insane.

You won't be able to use the Humane AI Pin without the subscription, so the subscription is effectively mandatory. This decision is baffling to me. As I said, a subscription for a cloud-based service is understandable, but if the company decided to run the device like this, the hardware itself needs to be cheaper... by A LOT!

Once again, let us compare it to the Rabbit AI. The Rabbit AI is priced at $199, with no subscription. That is all I need to mention. Comparison done.

When I watched the Rabbit R1 keynote I thought it was interesting. The features it provided seemed like a unique application of AI to me. Even though smartphones can do most, if not all, that it does, the Rabbit R1 still had different ways of interacting with the user that could make it more convenient to use for certain things, which is why it looked interesting to me. At the end of the keynote speech, the CEO unveiled the price and I was taken aback. I thought it would be more expensive for the feature it was showing, but they played it smart. For something which is a relatively new way for the user to interact with technology, the low price could be a great way for people to try it. I thought this was a very smart way to expose the Rabbit R1 to more people, and it was probably the only way something new and different could gain traction with the public (as opposed to tech enthusiasts).

The Humane AI Pin hardware is made of metal with small magnetically attached battery packs. It also has many sensors and a laser projector in a relatively small device. The device seems to be well-designed overall. With the technology it packs and factoring in the research and development that went into making it, it is understandable that the hardware itself could be expensive. The question is: is the expense that went into it and the price it needs to be at worth the service it provides?

At the moment, I don't think so.

Getting back to the main point: why were people debating MKBHD's review? Well, some people say that harsh reviews can destroy companies, and that is true. Reviewers with a large audience (like MKBHD) can influence many people. They do have some responsibility that comes with their position. Honestly, it would have been easy for anyone to be completely frustrated with the Humane AI pin and give it a much harsher review without being objective (like some already did), but MKBHD did their best to give the Humane AI Pin an objective review.

A comment I kept seeing when reading about this review issue is "A bad review doesn't kill companies, bad products do" and while it was annoying seeing this everywhere I turned, it is true. I feel like the Humane AI Pin came out too early and that could be their undoing.

Anyway, this article was meant to shed light on this interesting and controversial product and to allow me to vent a little bit about my frustration with it. You can watch MHBHD's review yourself below.