Wearable startup Humane AI laid off four percent of its employees before it has started shipping its Ai Pin, The Verge has reported. Leadership reportedly told employees that budgets would be lowered in 2024, according to sources familiar with the matter. The cuts were implemented earlier this week and affect around 10 people. On LinkedIn, CEO and co-founder Bethany Bongiorno called the cuts "part of a wider refresh of our organizational structure as our company evolves with purpose for this next phase of growth." She added that CTO Patrick Gates will be transitioning to an advisor role, and that Humane AI had promoted new heads of hardware, software and others as part of a reorganization.

Humane, the startup founded by former Apple design and engineering team Imran Chaudhri and Bethany Bongiorno, has officially launched its long-awaited Ai Pin -- making a splashy foray into the nascent field of artificial intelligence hardware. The device can magnetically clip onto clothing and will cost $699 with a $24-a-month subscription -- which will come with unlimited data and phone calls. The company also said it would partner with T-Mobile for phone service and Microsoft and OpenAI for AI technology. The device will be available to order starting Nov. 16. "For the technology you are getting, we set a high bar for ourselves in terms of pricing it at a level we think is approachable and accessible," Bongiorno, Humane's chief executive officer, said in an interview on Bloomberg TV Thursday.

Ken Kocienda walks toward me, with a small white square pinned to his shirt. "Play songs written by Prince, but not performed by Prince," he says. The Sinéad O'Connor version of'Nothing Compares 2 U'--a song originally written by Prince--begins to play. A green volume meter, pause button, and next-song button appear on his hand. He twists his wrist clockwise, and the volume rises. Anticlockwise, and the song gets quieter.