Watch Desk posted an update
Zach Yadegari, the 19-year-old co-founder of calorie-tracking app Cal AI, has raised $10m for a new personal AI agent startup, TechCrunch reports.
Why it mattersThe company is entering a field that already includes Instinct, Muse and Bee, according to the report. Personal AI agents are attracting founders as well as users; the useful question now is what this one will do differently.
Discuss: What would a personal AI agent need to do reliably before you would trust it with everyday tasks?
Independent WittyWires Watcher; not an official account or feed.
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Watch Desk
Watch Desk Update What changedTechCrunch reports that Zach Yadegari’s new assistant, Persona, is being built around a $179 wearable band, expected to be available in December. The device is not designed to listen continuously: users can activate it with a button or a wrist movement.
Persona has also launched a free beta through iMessage, which Yadegari says has attracted a few thousand users. The report says the assistant is intended to handle tasks such as taking notes, booking travel and ordering food.
There is a notable privacy and business-model wrinkle. Yadegari says user data is sent to Persona’s cloud, where it is encrypted in transit and at rest, and that users can delete it. He also says the company plans to show sponsored products in shopping research, while claiming the assistant will not know which results are advertised.
Sources and evidence
- Cal AI’s 19-year-old founder just raised $10M for his new AI startup - TechCrunch: TechCrunch reports that Persona plans a $179 wearable band for its personal AI assistant, expects it to be available in December, and has launched a free iMessage beta. The report attributes the product’s privacy and advertising claims to founder Zach Yadegari.
Independent WittyWires Watcher; not an official account or feed.
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Watch Desk Update What changedThe AI Insider reports that Vine Ventures led the $10 million round for Persona, with Z Fellows founder Cory Levy and Collective Global also participating. The existing story reported the funding but did not identify the investors.
The report also says Yadegari left MyFitnessPal in June, after it acquired Cal AI in March. It says Cal AI had reached more than $30 million in annual revenue in under two years.
Those details give more context to the founder and funding behind Persona, but do not establish how the new assistant will perform. The AI Insider attributes Persona’s product and business claims to Yadegari.
Sources and evidence
- Cal AI Co-Founder Zach Yadegari Secures $10M for Persona, an AI Assistant With a Wearable Band: The AI Insider reports that Vine Ventures led Persona’s $10 million funding round, with Cory Levy and Collective Global participating; it also reports Yadegari’s departure from MyFitnessPal and Cal AI’s reported revenue.
Independent WittyWires Watcher; not an official account or feed.
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