What the First Successful AI Hardware, Rabbit R1, Teaches Us

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Recently, I read an exclusive interview in FastCompany about the Rabbit R1, a $199 AI-powered device capable of performing certain tasks by recognizing users’ voices. You might have seen this burnt orange gadget spreading across the internet. Its portability, simple interactivity, and affordability have driven 50,000 preorders, helping Rabbit earn more than $10 million in just five days.

There’s no doubt that this is the most successful AI hardware launch to date. However, what intrigues me more is how the Rabbit R1, a product from a relatively unknown company, managed to leap into the mainstream. This interest particularly piqued when I learned that the founder of Rabbit R1 hails from the same place as me. Here’s what I discovered.

Strong Product Character

Lyu loves collecting vintage synthesizers, which connected Lyu to the founder of the Swedish audio hardware company Teenage Engineering.

Renowned for its innovative approach in designing and manufacturing electronic devices, Teenage Engineering has created notable products like the Playdate. This compact handheld gaming console, developed in partnership with Panic, stands as a testament to their creativity.

“We want to offer you one thing [AI] and the other thing [an amusing retro-future gadget] that takes you back to the ’90s, the good old fun times.” He said in the interview.

Simple human-AI interaction

In a world where startups and big tech giants are continuously vying to develop the next generation of AI-powered devices, Rabbit embraces a philosophy where simplicity reigns supreme.

The gadget boasts a pressable scroll wheel, designed for easy access to its built-in functions, including voice controls activated with a simple click.

Rabbit’s foray into voice interaction began early. Last year, they launched the Quantum Engine, a groundbreaking platform where users can upload scripts and have AI produce videos in real time. Users can select different characters and interact with NPCs. Remarkably, some Chinese users utilized this platform to recreate the famous TV drama “Empresses in the Palace” (后宫甄嬛传), receiving positive feedback for their innovative approach.

Rabbit R1 helps users plan travel routes

Affordable Price

Comparing Rabbit R1’s price tag to Humane’s AI Pin, which costs $699, it’s clear that Rabbit R1 is among the most affordable products from Teenage Engineering. At just $200, it offers an accessible glimpse into the future of AI, making advanced technology more attainable for everyone.

Entreprenue Spirit

Jesse Lyu, the founder of Rabbit and a serial entrepreneur from China, was born in 1990 in Xi’an, the same city where I’m from. Interestingly, Lyu didn’t start with a technical background. He pursued financial mathematics, studying at Xian Jiaotong-Liverpool University in Suzhou and the University of Liverpool in the UK.

Lyu’s entrepreneurial spirit was evident from his university days. In his senior year, he launched Timeet, a social media service that matched users based on their schedules.

Lyu’s business has always been the darling of VCs. He founded an early AI company called Raven Tech, which was later acquired by the Chinese tech giant Baidu in a 2017 deal worth $30 million. Raven Tech stood out as the only Chinese company to ever receive funding from the Y Combinator.

Although his stint at Baidu was short-lived, during that time he collaborated with Teenage Engineering to design an assistant speaker called Raven H, a speaker with a revolutionary design.

Raven H

Reducing the Risks of Innovation

Rabbit isn’t attempting to redefine AI hardware. In an interview with FastCompany, Lyu described the Rabbit R1 as “a result of giving you something that you already know.”

This mindset also influences a more cautious approach to hardware design, especially before the market is fully established. Lyu believes that as part of the first wave of AI hardware, it’s important not to combine software risks with a risky hardware form factor.

This reasoning sheds light on Lyu’s decision to avoid developing an app. Creating and maintaining apps for both iOS and Android would require significant, ongoing investment to achieve a high level of execution.

Asia Must Reads

Biden Aims to Restrict the Flow of Sensitive Data to Foreign Adversaries

Joe Biden / Bloomberg

Riley Griffin at Bloomberg reports that the Biden administration is preparing an executive order to protect highly sensitive personal and government-related data from foreign adversaries that may threaten national security.

Driving the news: Information is often obtained by intermediaries such as data brokers, third-party vendor agreements, employment agreements or investment agreements. The administration is concerned about the collection of data on political figures, journalists, academics, activists and patient data.

Why it matters: This marks the Biden administration’s effort to enhance data protection. Also, it is the result of AI technology development. The White House believes that “countries of concern” (they do not mention any country) can mine these data with AI more efficiently and engage in malicious activities like espionage or blackmail.

Japan Expects Avatars, Robots and AI to Tackle Labour Crisis

Japan’s growing labour shortage / Bloomberg

Driving the news: Japan faces questions about whether it is fully prepared for the 2025 Osaka World Expo under the national shortage of construction workers. Industries from construction, farming to retail are all making similar preparations. For example, they deliver goods by train instead of truck, use robots to weed the rice paddies, and employ remotely controlled avatars to offer greetings and advice in convenience stores.

Why it matters: As Asia’s largest advanced economy, Japan’s government, companies and people are all thinking about how to cope with the shortfall of workers. This may serve as a template for their neighbour China, whose population has begun to shrink. (Kana Inagaki, Leo Lewis and David Keohane / FT)

Bonus

The distancing of U.S. VC firms from investments in Chinese tech leads to an executive shakeup. According to The Information, a16z general partner Connie Chan, known for identifying internet trends emerging from China, is leaving the firm as it shifts towards consumer apps powered by AI fields and may start her own fund. (Kate Clark, Erin Woo and Cory Weinberg / The Information)

Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Pegatron reports to have received an order for the AI Pin, set to launch in March, positioning them as the first Taiwanese supplier in AI consumer products. Pegatron’s main focus lies in communication, consumer electronics, and information technology products.（Wang Yulun and Chen yuxiang / Economic Daily News)

YouTube star MrBeast debuts on China’s internet with Bilibili, the largest youth-oriented Chinese streaming platform. This follows the influencer’s debut on X last week. “It’s going to be a fun ride,” Mr.Beast said in the video, asking Chinese viewers to tell him what they’d like to see.

MrBeast on Bilibili

Chinese tech manufacturers flock to Vietnam to set up new factories, follow ongoing U.S.-China tensions, and bring the influential cultural impact on the industrial hub of Bac Ninh. (Lam Le and Viola Zhou / Rest of World)

Nepal-born founder’s AI startup Fusemachines strikes $200 million SPAC deal to list on Nasdaq. Founded in 2013, Fusemachines develops artificial intelligence products for enterprises. (Saitha Rai / Bloomberg)

North Korea is developing AI and machine learning with foreign scholars for everything from how to respond to COVID-19 and safeguard nuclear reactors to wargaming simulations and government surveillance, according to a new study. (Josh Smith / Reuters)

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