Humane Raises $100M to Revolutionize Personal Technology

A New Tech Venture Secures Substantial Funding

A nascent technology company, established by a former senior designer and a senior software engineer both previously at Apple, has successfully obtained a significant investment to expand its operations. Humane, with the goal of developing a novel category of consumer devices and technologies arising from a synergistic approach to design and engineering, has secured $100 million in funding. This represents a pivotal moment for the company as it aims to redefine the relationship between people and technology.

Series B Funding Details

This funding round constitutes a Series B investment, spearheaded by Tiger Global Management. Participation also comes from prominent investors including SoftBank Group, BOND, Forerunner Ventures, and Qualcomm Ventures. Additional backers in this Series B include Sam Altman, Lachy Groom, Kindred Ventures, Marc Benioff’s TIME Ventures, Valia Ventures, NEXT VENTŪRES, Plexo Capital, and the law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.

Company History and Previous Funding

Humane was founded in 2017, but finalized its Series A funding round only last year. This earlier round totaled $30 million in September 2020, valuing the company at $150 million, as reported by PitchBook. Prior to this, the company had raised nearly $12 million, with many of the current investors having also contributed to those initial funding efforts.

Valuation Remains Undisclosed

The company has chosen not to publicly disclose its valuation following this Series B funding round.

Why the Investor Confidence?

Considering Humane has yet to launch any products or reveal detailed information about its projects, and acknowledging the inherent risks associated with hardware development, the level of investor interest is noteworthy. The founders’ reputations likely play a significant role in attracting this capital.

Founders’ Backgrounds

The co-founders, Imran Chaudhri and Bethany Bongiorno, are highly respected figures in the technology industry. Bongiorno serves as Humane’s CEO and previously held the position of software engineering director at Apple. Chaudhri, the chairman and president of Humane, was formerly Apple’s director of design, contributing to iconic products like the iPhone, iPad, and Mac over a 20-year tenure. Both founders hold numerous patents stemming from their time at Apple, with additional patents filed more recently.

Clues to Future Products

Recent patent filings and the extensive list of job openings on Humane’s website offer potential insights into the company’s direction. These represent the most concrete indications of the pair’s ongoing work.

Patents and Job Openings

One patent describes a “Wearable multimedia device and cloud computing platform with laser projection system.” Another patent details a “System and apparatus for fertility and hormonal cycle awareness.” Currently, the company is actively recruiting for nearly 50 positions, including engineers specializing in camera and computer vision, hardware engineers, designers, and security professionals. This hiring surge signals where a substantial portion of the new funding will be allocated.

Investor Perspectives

“The caliber of individuals working at Humane is incredibly impressive,” stated Chase Coleman, partner at Tiger Global. “These are people who have built and shipped transformative products to billions of people around the world. What they are building is groundbreaking with the potential to become a standard for computing going forward.”

Seeking Further Information

Requests have been made for more detailed information regarding the company’s product roadmap and its core principles. Clarification is also sought regarding its target customers – whether it will design products for other companies or directly serve end-users.

Reimagining the Role of Technology

Bongiorno and Chaudhri suggest their motivation stems from a desire to redefine technology’s role in future innovation. This is a question frequently posed, but few actively invest in finding a solution. Humane’s progress warrants observation, contingent on the company’s willingness to share its developments.

Company Vision

“Humane is a place where people can truly innovate through a genuine collaboration of design and engineering,” the co-founders explained in a joint statement. “We are an experience company that creates products for the benefit of people, crafting technology that puts people first — a more personal technology that goes beyond what we know today. We’re all waiting for something new, something that goes beyond the information age that we have all been living with. At Humane, we’re building the devices and the platform for what we call the intelligence age. We are committed to building a different type of company, founded on our values of trust, truth and joy. With the support of our partners, we will continue to scale the team with individuals who not only share our passion for revolutionizing the way we interact with computing, but also for how we build.”

Further Insights into Humane’s Approach

Update: Additional information from Humane reveals its aim to develop “technology that improves the human experience and is born of good intentions; products that put us back in touch with ourselves, each other, and the world around us; and experiences that are built on trust, with interactions that feel magical and bring joy.” This approach seeks to move away from current trends, prioritizing mindfulness and thoughtful design. If successfully implemented alongside continued innovation, Humane may offer a compelling alternative.