Amidst Humane’s challenges in the emerging field of AI hardware, two key employees have departed to establish their own startup. This narrative echoes Humane’s own beginnings, as founders Bethany Bongiorno and Imran Chaudhri previously left long-standing roles at Apple to launch their own venture.
Former Humane Strategic Partnerships Lead, Brooke Hartley Moy, and Head of Product Engineering, Ken Kocienda, have opted to steer clear of the hardware landscape with their new project, Infactory—an AI-powered fact-checking search engine. Although still in its early stages, the founders have openly discussed their plans, marking a significant departure from Humane’s pre-launch secrecy.
AI will play a pivotal role in Infactory. Kocienda, with 16 years of experience at Apple, has been involved in this space long before Humane’s inception. Furthermore, launching a startup in 2024 without an upfront AI pitch is nearly impossible.
Hartley Moy and Kocienda, now serving as CEO and CTO respectively, emphasize Infactory’s discerning approach to AI usage. They intend to leverage large language models (LLMs) to create a more natural language interface, sparing users from typing various word configurations to achieve desired results.
However, AI won’t influence the search results directly. Unlike Google’s current approach, which prioritizes Gemini summaries, Infactory will extract information directly from trusted sources, complete with proper citations. While skepticism about source accuracy persists, the new service aims to avoid the hallucinations plaguing existing generative AI systems. Infactory will adopt subscription pricing, targeting enterprise clients such as newsrooms and research facilities, and will initially focus exclusively on data-related queries.
Infactory will adopt a subscription-based pricing model, targeting enterprise clients rather than individual consumers. The service is specifically tailored for newsrooms and research facilities, focusing exclusively on data-related queries during its initial launch.
For instance, consider a financial publication seeking to compare the annual financials of two separate companies. While some searches are straightforward, others may be more complex. Imagine wanting to compare the sales figures of Apple and Samsung devices over the past five years. Infactory would locate and consolidate that information.
When launching a fact-checking engine, accuracy is paramount. Infactory prioritizes data vendors over content providers, recognizing their expertise in computational and fact-based information. The goal is to ensure reliable and precise data for users.
Regarding funding, Infactory has secured pre-seed investment, although the exact amount and investors remain undisclosed. Over the next six to 18 months, the team will focus on securing seed funding.
The founders of Infactory acknowledge that their departure from Humane coincided with the company’s post-launch challenges. Humane faced criticism and consumer disinterest after the AI Pin’s lackluster reception, leading to layoffs and rumors of a potential sale.
However, both co-founders of Infactory emphasize that their decision to start their own company was not directly influenced by Humane’s struggles. Ken Kocienda, reflecting on the difficulty of hardware development and entrepreneurship, appreciates the courage of founders who take risks. He believes that a diverse landscape of startups contributes to industry innovation beyond conglomerates.
Regarding Infactory’s launch, Brooke Hartley Moy indicates that it will happen in the coming months