Era raises $11M to build a software platform for AI gadgets | TechCrunch

Last day to exhibit your breakthrough to 10,000+ tech leaders at Disrupt is on Oct 2. Book Exhibit Table Now. Disrupt doors open Oct. 13. Get your pass and bring someone with you at 50% off. REGISTER NOW. Earlier in April, the startup Era held a gathering in New York for artists who had received its developer kit. The artists showed off the various mini gadgets they had built, like a souvenir that tells you facts and jokes about France, a phone-like device that looks at your stocks and tells if today is the day you can quit your job, or a gadget that tells you about air quality. While all these devices are experimental, the common thread is Era’s platform, which allows hardware makers to create AI agents and orchestrations for AI devices. The company doesn’t want to create devices itself, but aims to enable others to do so by providing a software layer that could handle tasks like customized voice creation or adding intelligence to a classic device, such as headphones. The startup has raised $11 million in funding to date. This includes a $9 million seed round led by Abstract Ventures and BoxGroup, with participation from Collaborative Fund and Mozilla Ventures. Previously, the com