Aina raises $5.5m to build hardware that triggers AI agents

Aina, a startup founded by former Ultrahuman hardware executive Apoorv Shankar, has raised $5.5 million to build small devices designed to trigger and steer AI “agents” rather than merely record user activity. The company, based in Bengaluru and San Francisco, told TechCrunch the round was led by Redstart Labs and 360 ONE, with participation from MIXI Global Investments, Antler, and Blume Founders Fund.

Aina’s pitch is a reaction to a first wave of AI hardware that behaves like a sensor: always listening, always transcribing, always collecting context. Shankar argues that phones and laptops already contain enough context—open apps, calendars, messages, meeting windows—but that this data is underused because users still have to manually initiate actions. His answer is a set of physical controls that sit outside the operating system’s shifting menus and permissions, turning “agentic” workflows into muscle memory.

The first product Aina plans to ship is Dune, a three-key, context-aware macro keyboard that can run preset shortcuts and scripts depending on what application is on screen. In TechCrunch’s description, it can also control microphone and camera settings during meetings—functions that have become routine points of friction as video calls spread across workplaces, schools, and contractor networks.

Aina has also prototyped two other devices: Radiance, a tabletop remote aimed at video calls with a dial and buttons for mic, camera, an AI notetaker, voice modulation, and joining meetings; and Shift, a single-tap button meant to trigger an AI agent to perform a repeated task via a phone connection. In early testing, Dune was the most popular, and Aina decided to ship it first while bundling features from Radiance and Shift into the initial hardware.

The bet is that “AI agents” will not be adopted primarily through new standalone gadgets, but through better control surfaces for the software people already use. TechCrunch notes a growing market for hardware that triggers AI coding tools such as Claude Code and OpenAI’s Codex, including OpenAI’s own custom keypad built with Work Louder. If that pattern holds, the winning devices may look less like new computers and more like purpose-built buttons that make automation socially acceptable in shared spaces—one tap to draft, summarize, file, or respond, with fewer visible steps.

Aina says it plans to start testing its next product with a small group of selected users in the coming weeks. For now, the company is shipping a keyboard with three keys and an ambition to make “agents” feel less like a demo and more like a habit.