Ambi Raises $26M to Develop AI App That Listens Continuously for Real-Time Assistance

Image: Ambi co-founder Peter Mo.Image Credits:Ambi · Source

Ambi, led by ex-Plaud exec Peter Mo, has secured $26 million to build AI-powered apps that listen to users continuously, offering contextual assistance across devices while addressing privacy concerns with opt-in controls.

Ambi, a startup founded by former Plaud executive Peter Mo, has secured $26 million in funding to advance its AI-driven app that continuously listens to users to provide intelligent assistance and insights in real time. The funding was led by Luminous Ventures and Huaqin, an ODM company, underscoring investor confidence in the market for personalized AI assistants that operate unobtrusively in the background.

The company's app ecosystem targets Apple devices, including iPhones, Macs, and Apple Watches, functioning primarily as meeting notetakers that can optionally listen throughout the day to gather contextual information. Unlike traditional meeting summarization services that process recorded data post-call, Ambi aims to offer proactive suggestions and pull up relevant information during meetings by leveraging a wide range of data sources, such as users' calendars, knowledge bases, and web content.

Mo highlights that current interfaces limit interaction with AI, which is often delayed by device and cloud processing. Ambi seeks to provide AI intelligence anytime and anywhere, enhancing productivity by allowing seamless task continuation across devices.

Future plans include a desktop app capable of monitoring user activity to store key information and improve personalized recommendations. Ambi is also developing a dedicated hardware device equipped with a screen, speaker, camera, and multiple microphones to enrich context capture and display relevant information.

However, the company enters the market amid heightened scrutiny regarding privacy and data security. Continuous audio capture raises concerns about recording bystanders without consent, a challenge partly reflected in lawsuits faced by other meeting transcription providers. Ambi states that ambient listening is disabled by default and can be turned off by users, that no audio recordings are stored, and that all data is encrypted, though specifics on encryption practices are not detailed.

Mo acknowledges the broader industry challenge of ensuring ambient data capture disclosure, emphasizing that the responsibility to inform others lies with users—an area the company is working to address but which remains unsolved broadly.

Currently, Ambi employs over 50 staff across offices in San Francisco, Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen, with active recruitment for go-to-market roles and AI engineers specializing in speech-recognition technologies. As it progresses, Ambi aims to push the envelope on ambient AI assistance while navigating the complex landscape of privacy and user trust.