More of Humane’s AI Pin were returned than purchased between May and August, The Verge reported . The pin retails between $700 and $800 — plus a $24 monthly subscription for $288 annually.
In total, the company has reportedly seen $1 million in returns — and thousands of its units were canceled even before they were shipped, according to the report.
And overall sales aren’t going as planned. The company shipped only 10,000 units — when it hoped to sell 10 times that, or around 100,000, according to the New York Times .
The situation — $1 million in returns against $9 million in sales — is notably grim since the company had raised $200 million from Silicon Valley execs, the report noted.
Humane’s AI Pin is being returned faster than the product can be sold, according to a report. Bloomberg via Getty Images
Months ago upon release, the device, meant to be a camera-guided virtual assistant, had been panned heavily by reviewers .
What was meant to be a piece of groundbreaking technology is a consumer lemon, customers say of Humane’s AI Pin. Bloomberg via Getty Images
“What did I do to deserve this? The error messages. The delayed response times. The always-dead batteries,” she continued. “My 2-year-old heard the Humane Pin say ‘Input passcode’ so many times he started running around the house yelling it.”
“We knew we were at the starting line, not the finish line” when the AI Pin launched, spokesperson Zoz Cuccias told the outlet, adding that software updates were made to “address user feedback.”
Regarding the report about sales, Cuccias said, “We do not comment on financial data, and will refer it to our legal counsel.”
The Pin is being returned in droves. Bloomberg via Getty Images
The company’s leadership, reported to be in flux by The Verge, also appears to have missed early warning signs reported by product testers.
Users called it both “disorienting” and “frustrating” and griped that it worked nothing like seen in a corporate demonstration video.
Feedback like that “ripped through the company like a bullet,” per the outlet.
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