Perplexity, an AI-powered search engine, is looking to get into some kind of hardware.
Aravind Srinivas, founder and CEO of Perplexity, posted on X yesterday that the company is looking to create a “simple and under $50” device to “reliably answer” questions “voice-to-voice.” I posted. He promised that Perplexity would “definitely” sell such a device if the post received more than 5,000 likes.
It happened. “Okay. LFG!” Srinivas replied.
Are you okay. LFG! https://t.co/hMw3eugb0l
— Aravind Srinivas (@AravSrinivas) November 26, 2024
Hardware is becoming something of an obsession among high-profile AI startups. Partly because of its fame, but also because new AI-focused form factors have the potential to enable new kinds of interactions. Art generator Midjourney formed a hardware team in August, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently confirmed he is working on an AI hardware project with former Apple design chief Jony Ive. .
But hardware is difficult.
Rabbit's R1 is probably one of the most successful AI devices of recent years, and is available in large quantities at a deep discount on eBay. Rabbit claims to have sold about 130,000 units as of June, but the startup has been slow to realize many of the features it touted before R1's launch.
Other AI device ventures have crashed and burned, but the most extreme examples are humanitarian ones. The startup promoted its futuristic wearable device, Ai Pin, as a sort of smartphone replacement. But reviews were terrible, sales were low, and safety issues forced Humane to recall it. Eventually, Humane began looking for an acquisition.
Currently, Perplexity has a lot of cash in the bank and is said to be close to raising around $500 million. That's one element of hardware success. But with history as a guide, there are many other things the company must get right if it wants to succeed (or at least avoid a dud).