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technology1d ago
Google Acquires Top Talent From AI Voice Startup Hume AI in Licensing Deal
Wired.com and 1 more
- Google DeepMind hires Hume AI’s CEO Alan Cowen and several engineers through a licensing deal, signaling a strategic move to accelerate emotion-aware voice capabilities.
- Hume AI projects $100 million in revenue for 2026 as it collaborates with AI labs to tune models for more capable voice assistants.
- The licensing approach reflects a broader tech trend to attract top AI talent via aquihires and licensing rather than traditional acquisitions.
- Google aims to weave voice and emotion tech into its frontier models to compete with OpenAI and other rivals in AI-assisted interactions.
- Hume AI trains its models by having experts annotate emotional cues in real conversations to enable emotion-aware responses.
- Google reportedly spent billions licensing technology from other AI startups, underscoring aggressive talent and capability-building strategies.
- Hume AI plans to continue supplying its technology to other frontier AI labs despite its licensing deal with Google.
- The licensing move places Google in a competitive position to power a 'new version' of voice-enabled assistants, potentially rivaling Siri-like experiences.
- The broader push centers on improving customer interactions through emotion-aware AI across devices and contexts.
- The deal is part of a wave of AI leadership moves involving talent from Inflection, Adept, and Scale AI, highlighting a crowded landscape for experts.
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