Google hires Hume AI CEO and engineers in licensing deal to boost Gemini voice and emotion features

Wired
Wired 4d
Google DeepMind is hiring Hume AI’s CEO and several engineers under a new licensing agreement, aiming to integrate emotionally intelligent voice capabilities into its AI models while Hume continues selling its tech to other labs.
Google hires Hume AI CEO and engineers in licensing deal to boost Gemini voice and emotion features
A What happened
Google DeepMind is bringing in Hume AI CEO Alan Cowen and about seven other engineers as part of a licensing agreement, according to WIRED. The recruits are expected to help DeepMind integrate voice interaction and emotion detection into its latest models, including work related to Gemini. Financial terms were not disclosed. Hume AI says it will continue supplying its technology to other frontier AI labs. Hume AI has raised $74 million and, according to an investor, expects $100 million in revenue in 2026 as it works with AI labs to tune models into more capable voice assistants. The move reflects a broader industry trend of major AI companies using licensing-and-hiring arrangements to accelerate product development, similar to reported deals involving Character.ai, Inflection, Adept, and Scale AI. Hume AI’s incoming CEO is Andrew Ettinger, who said the company plans to release new models in the coming months.

Why it matters

  • Voice and emotion sensing are becoming core AI interfaces: The deal signals that major AI labs see voice mode as a primary way users will interact with AI, and that detecting mood and emotion from speech is viewed as important for better assistants.

  • Licensing-plus-talent deals are a growing pattern in AI: Google’s move fits a broader trend where large AI companies combine technology licensing with hiring key startup leaders and engineers to speed up integration and product delivery.

  • Hume AI remains an independent supplier despite the hires: Hume AI says it will keep providing its technology to other frontier AI labs, even as its former CEO and engineers join Google DeepMind.

Topics

Technology & Innovation Artificial Intelligence Business & Markets Startups/VC Big Tech Innovation

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