It's safe to say I'm not a huge fan of AI. I think the idea of making your workflow or life easier using AI is perfectly fine - in fact, I think it will be an essential part of the future. However, the idea of having an AI gadget on the fly that can be a personal assistant is exciting, even if the latest two have completely missed the point.
The Rabbit r1 and the Humane Pin are currently the laughing stocks on Twitter. The former is much cheaper than Humane's offering, but it's running on Android (you can even download the Rabbit OS APK) and is another gadget to hold in your pocket, likely alongside your smartphone. However, the Humane Pin is arguably a lot worse, asking for a high price, offering a slow AI, and a monthly subscription to top it all off.
However, the idea is still there. Using an AI gadget as an artificial assistant to help with your daily life is a great idea. In fact, I was surprisingly impressed with the Humane Pin in theory, allowing you to step away from your smartphone but still have a handy gadget nearby in case you need it. While most people are caught up on the best AI chatbots, the idea of AI helping you with boring tasks is actually promising.
Unfortunately, both of these products completely miss the mark. No one wants an additional gadget to charge and carry around. Especially considering the Humane AI's battery life is ridiculously bad. However, one AI gadget that could work particularly well is something you wouldn't expect - the Ray-Ban Meta sunglasses.
We recently tested the sunglasses in our Ray-Ban Meta sunglasses review, and while the product is a luxury pair of smart sunglasses first and foremost, the potential of Meta AI being able to do everything these gadgets do, but as a pair of sunglasses you already want to wear, is more exciting. They also double as a camera and earbuds too, giving you an accessory to your smartphone that feels less like a chore to bring with you, but rather a neat gadget you'll want to bring.
In fact, another company has got the right idea too. Nothing is currently rolling out ChatGPT voice assistant support to the Nothing earbuds. It's not asking for you to buy a new product to enhance your life, but rather, giving you an AI assistant with gadgets you already own. It's not going to compare to the potential of what Rabbit r1 could offer after lots of data, but it's not an extra cost either.
I certainly think there's a future for AI gadgets that are an essential piece of tech you want to bring with you at all times, but with Galaxy AI in Samsung smartphones and potential AI in iOS 18, these gadgets need to find a better selling point. However, we're certainly not there yet.