Rick Boers vs Humane AI Pin
Explore what we can build. Examples describe possible workflows; integrations, hosting, and scope are agreed for your project.
The Humane AI Pin was a screenless, voice-first wearable computer with a camera, laser-projected palm display, and its own cellular connection, launched in 2024 at $699 plus a required $24/month subscription. It is discontinued: HP acquired Humane's platform, patents, and team for $116 million in February 2025, and all Pins lost their core functions at 12 p.m. PT on February 28, 2025 when Humane's servers went offline. As of July 2026 the device cannot be bought new or used as intended; Humane's website is offline, and the team now builds HP IQ, an on-device AI layer for HP business PCs.
Rick Boers is an independent AI product builder. I design and build custom agents, document workflows, internal tools, and complete web and mobile applications, with one person owning the work from brief to delivery.
At a glance
| Comparison dimension | Rick Boers | Humane AI Pin |
|---|---|---|
| Always-on computer | Hosting and runtime architecture are chosen for your project; dedicated VMs are one option. | No — the Pin was a wearable dependent on Humane's cloud; nothing worked persistently in the background, and since February 28, 2025 the servers are off and devices are bricked. |
| Tool integrations | I build integrations around the tools your workflow needs. Access, permissions, API availability, and any service subscriptions are checked and scoped before implementation. | Effectively none — calls/texts, photos, translation, music, and AI queries via Microsoft/OpenAI models, with no third-party work-app ecosystem; all of it stopped working at shutdown. |
| Messaging channels | Messaging or web interfaces are implemented where supported and included in the agreed scope. | While live, its own phone number for voice and SMS over a T-Mobile MVNO; no Slack, WhatsApp, Telegram, or proactive outreach — and no channels at all since the 2025 shutdown. |
| Persistent memory | Storage and memory can be designed for the workflow, with retention and access controls agreed first. | Photos, videos, and notes synced to Humane's cloud portal; all user data on Humane's servers was permanently deleted after February 28, 2025. |
| Background automations | Scheduled and background jobs can be included with monitoring, limits, and human review where needed. | None — it was an on-demand voice assistant with no scheduled jobs or background task execution. |
| Pricing | The first 20-minute fit call is free. Paid work is scoped individually. We agree the deliverables, price, and payment milestones before work begins; hosting and model costs depend on the system we build. | Check the provider’s current pricing and plan limits. |
Where Humane AI Pin shines
- Genuinely ambitious hardware: a standalone wearable with camera, laser-projected palm display, and its own T-Mobile-based phone number — no smartphone required.
- Pioneered hands-free, voice-first ambient computing with features like real-time translation, which influenced how the industry thinks about post-smartphone devices.
- Real engineering depth — HP paid $116 million for the CosmOS software platform, 300+ patents and patent applications, and the team, which now powers HP IQ.
- An unusually dedicated community: open-source projects like OpenPin and PenumbraOS revived bricked Pins as hackable standalone Android devices.
Where it falls short
- The product no longer exists: every Pin was server-dependent and stopped working for calls, messaging, AI queries, and cloud access on February 28, 2025, and all user data on Humane's servers was permanently deleted.
- Even when it worked, it was a reactive voice assistant, not an autonomous agent — it answered queries in the moment but could not do background work, run scheduled jobs, or operate apps and websites on your behalf.
- It had essentially no work-tool integrations (no email triage, Slack, project trackers, or code tools) and no way to message you proactively across channels.
- Reception while it was alive was poor — reviewers panned it as slow and overpriced, and returns at one point outpaced sales, which led directly to the fire-sale acquisition.
- The shutdown left owners with bricked hardware and refunds only inside a 90-day window, a cautionary tale about products whose core functions live entirely on a vendor's servers.
Choose Humane AI Pin if…
- You are a hardware tinkerer who wants a cheap secondhand Pin to revive with OpenPin or PenumbraOS as a hackable standalone Android AI device.
- You want the spiritual successor inside an HP fleet: HP IQ brings the Humane team's on-device AI (Ask IQ, file analysis, NearSense device hand-off) to HP EliteBook X G2 AI PCs — rollout began Spring 2026, with more HP devices later in the year.
- You collect or study notable consumer-hardware history — the Pin is a landmark artifact of the 2024 AI gadget wave.
Choose Rick Boers if…
- You need a custom workflow or product built around your team.
- You want one builder to own design, implementation, and delivery.
- Your project needs integrations or behavior beyond a packaged tool.
- You need a custom workflow or product built around your team.
Common questions
Does the Humane AI Pin still work in 2026?
Not as originally designed. Humane's servers shut down at 12 p.m. PT on February 28, 2025, ending calling, messaging, AI queries, and cloud access, and stored user data was deleted. Open-source projects like OpenPin and PenumbraOS can partially revive a Pin as a standalone hacked device, but that requires technical work and is unofficial.
What happened to Humane after HP bought it?
HP acquired Humane's CosmOS platform, more than 300 patents and patent applications, and most of its team for $116 million in February 2025 and shut down the AI Pin business. The team became HP IQ, an AI innovation lab led by Humane cofounder Imran Chaudhri; its on-device workplace AI (Ask IQ, file analysis, NearSense) was unveiled at HP Imagine in March 2026 and began rolling out on HP EliteBook X G2 AI PCs in Spring 2026, with broader HP device support planned later in the year.
Is Rick Boers a replacement for the Humane AI Pin?
They solved different problems: the Pin was wearable hardware for in-the-moment voice queries, while Rick Boers is a software platform for hiring autonomous AI agents that each run on their own always-on cloud computer with 70+ tool integrations. If what attracted you to the Pin was an AI that's always available, Rick Boers delivers that through the phone you already own — via iMessage, WhatsApp, Slack, or Telegram — rather than a separate device.