rabbit releases r1, an AI walkie-talkie that can plan itinerary, order food, book taxi and more

rabbit’s AI handheld device graces CES 2024

During CES 2024, Santa Monica-based AI startup rabbit introduced r1, a handheld and touchscreen artificial intelligence device that works like a walkie-talkie with camera functionality. The main premise of the r1 is that it does what any app can do without needing a smartphone. Want to arrange a flight? Done. Planning to order lunch or dinner? No problem. Need to book a taxi? Why not?

All the user needs to do is press the button on the side of the AI device, talk to the card-sized walkie-talkie about their request, and wait for the machine to get it all done. r1, in a nutshell, wants an app-free online experience by packing everything an app performs into one portable touchscreen device. rabbit’s r1 is mainly powered by two settings: its in-house OS called rabbit OS and the so-called Large Action Model or LAM, which is its system designed to make AI see and perform apps in the same way humans do, such as buying items and completing purchases.

It is also because of this LAM that rabbit’s r1 removes the need for users to download and use multiple apps since it and the OS navigate an app’s functionality on their own, like a personal assistant running errands. rabbit says that because of its OS and LAM, the AI walkie-talkie can understand and perform tasks more than just switching on and off lights, playing music, and giving weather updates.

images and video stills courtesy of rabbit

r1 co-designed with teenage engineering

rabbit’s r1 and its AI will not work without an engineered and user-friendly body. To do that, the startup taps the design firm teenage engineering, whose portfolio ranges from synthesizers to audio devices and more. For r1, teenage engineering draws its design influences from the retro days of Tamagotchi and the portability of Post-it notes. Its luminous orange streak brightens up the device and catches attention right off the bat, an ideal setting for its 2.88-inch touchscreen display, 115-gram weight, push-to-talk button, and a scroll wheel of the same color used to navigate through options.

On the right side of the AI device, just above the scroll wheel, there is a camera named rabbit eye. May the viewers not be stunned once the camera flexes its ability to rotate and twist in 360-angle to capture and document the surroundings. Because of this feature, the user can take work video calls using r1 and can ask the AI device to scan and look up for them using physical objects in their surroundings. Take the remaining food in the user’s refrigerator as an example. The user just needs to hold up r1 and point the camera toward the refrigerator, and the AI device will soon suggest recipes using their leftover meals and remaining ingredients.

rabbit’s r1 is an AI device able to execute tasks of potentially any smartphone app, now showcased at CES 2024

Privacy guaranteed with rabbit’s ai device r1?

rabbit wants to highlight that r1 is a standalone handheld device that does not need a smartphone to be managed or for it to function. For specs fans, the AI device has both WiFi and cellular connectivity options since the user can insert their own SIM card in the dedicated slot. Inside its teenage engineering-designed casing, r1 boasts a 2.3 GHz MediaTek Helio P35 processor, 4 GB of memory and 128 GB of storage, and a USB-C port. rabbit claims that the battery charge can last for a day too.

Those who are worried about their privacy, rabbit says that they have the option to delete their stored data at any time and that they will also be informed and have control over which types of action are being delegated to the system. The startup assures them too that r1’s hardware does not have an always-active listening mode, that its microphone will not record unless the button on the side is pressed, and that its rotating camera’s default position is with its lens blocked.

Visitors to CES 2024 can experience rabbit’s r1 first-hand when they swing by their booth. In case interested fans are not able to make it, rabbit has already opened its pool of pre-sales starting January 9th, and as of January 10th, rabbit announced on X that its first batch sold 10,000 units already with the second batch now available for reservation. Each AI device is priced at 199 USD, and rabbit says that there’s no additional monthly subscription required. For US orders, shipping starts late March 2024 while global orders are sent out later this 2024.

rabbit’s AI device r1, which is on display at CES 2024, has a push-to-talk button on the side