Bengaluru- and San Francisco-based startup Aina has raised $5.5 million in a funding round to develop hardware designed to control AI agents rather than simply capture user activity.
The round was led by Redstart Labs (Info Edge India) and 360 ONE, with participation from MIXI Global Investments, Antler, and Blume Founders Fund. Individual investors include WhatsApp head Kunal Shah, Razorpay co-founders Harshil Mathur and Shashank Kumar, and Scribd founder Tikhon Bernstam.
Previously known as Project Mirage, Aina was founded by Apoorv Shankar, who formerly served as Vice President of Hardware at Ultrahuman. Before joining the smart ring maker, Shankar founded LazyCo, a hardware interface startup that developed devices including a ring capable of controlling smartphones and other gadgets. Ultrahuman later acquired LazyCo.
“I left Ultrahuman last year because I was just super curious about the space of AI interfaces,” Shankar told TechCrunch. “Devices like Rabbit and Humane Pin had launched, and I had my own disappointments with them. However, I was just excited that we are seeing interfaces being a thing now. And as an engineer turned product designer, this was the hottest thing I could imagine myself building.”
Dune to be first commercial product
Aina’s first product is Dune, a three-key, context-aware macro keyboard that lets users trigger shortcuts and automate tasks based on the application they are using.
The device can:
- Control the microphone and camera during meetings.
- Run predefined shortcuts or scripts based on the active application.
- Trigger automated workflows through programmable keys.
The startup also developed two other prototypes:
- Radiance – a tabletop controller for video meetings featuring a volume dial and buttons for microphone, camera, AI note-taking, voice modulation and joining calls.
- Shift – a single-button device that connects to a smartphone and triggers an AI agent to perform recurring tasks with one press.
According to the company, early user testing showed the strongest demand for Dune. As a result, Aina decided to launch that device first while incorporating capabilities from the other prototypes over time.
Focus on controlling AI agents
The company said feedback from Dune users will help shape its next hardware product, which is already scheduled for testing with a small group of users in the coming weeks.
Shankar said the upcoming device will differ from products that continuously record conversations or surroundings.
“I think you have enough context, you have in your phone and your laptop all the time, and we haven’t even started using that well. We are building an action-oriented device that will use the context to help you control and trigger workflows,” he said.
Growing competition in AI hardware
Aina enters an increasingly crowded market for AI interface devices.
Products including the Sandbar ring, Plaud AI pin and desktop note-taker, Pocket pucks, Bee, Friend, Meta Ray-Bans, and Even Realities smart glasses are pursuing different approaches to AI-powered hardware.
The company’s launch also comes as developers and knowledge workers increasingly adopt AI coding tools such as Claude Code and OpenAI Codex, prompting more hardware makers to build devices for controlling AI agents.
The source also notes reports that OpenAI is developing a smart speaker with an AI assistant, while Rabbit R1 and experiments by Qualcomm—which says it is testing more than 40 AI interaction devices—reflect continued efforts to define the next generation of AI hardware.
TL;DR:
AI hardware startup Aina has raised $5.5 million to build devices that control AI agents. Its first product, Dune, is a programmable macro keypad, with additional AI interface devices planned.
Key points:
- Aina raised $5.5 million in a funding round led by Redstart Labs and 360 ONE.
- Founder Apoorv Shankar previously led hardware at Ultrahuman and founded LazyCo.
- The startup’s first product, Dune, is a three-key macro keyboard for controlling AI workflows.
- Aina also developed Radiance and Shift, but chose to commercialize Dune first after user testing.
- The company is developing another AI control device focused on triggering agents rather than continuously recording user activity.
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