Launch by email Superhuman is launching an AI-powered instant reply feature today, with the company looking to double its AI-powered functionality this year. The feature gives you three contextual replies as options to quickly reply to an email.
Superhuman is built around the idea of getting you to inbox zero the fastest way. Instant replies are another feature to quickly get emails out of your way. You can think of Instant Replies as the equivalent of Gmail’s Smart Replies, but Superhuman said its functionality is more contextual and personal.
However, the basic idea is the same. You’ll get three possible reply options when you hit reply on an email. While the prompts are short, when you click on any of the options, Superhuman writes you a full-sentence response.
As the demo video below shows, when you click “Interested” in an email asking you to speak on a panel, the customer types a full sentence with the sender’s name. You can press tab to switch between replies and press enter to send one. The company said that users who participated in the beta test of direct replies send emails twice as fast.
Adding AI to email
Superhuman has already launched a few AI-powered products. It was released last year Superhuman AIthat helps users compose better emails with options to change the length or tone.
In January, the company expanded the functionality to iPhone and iPad apps as well. In November, the startup launched an automatic summary feature, which shows a one-line summary above your emails.
Some of Superhuman’s competitors have also included AI-powered features in their email workflows. Shortwave, a startup founded by ex-Googlers, has launched things like asking AI questions about emails, instant summaries, and a way to use AI to respond to emails quickly. of Readdle Email client Spark introduced an AI assistant last year. Big tech companies like Microsoft and Google have introduced AI-powered features for Outlook and Gmail.
Superhuman co-founder and CEO Rahul Vohra told TechCrunch that the key differentiator for the company when it comes to AI-powered features is its stickiness. He noted that an average user uses AI 25 times a week to write emails.
The road map of superman
Superhuman says the first phase of the AI-powered product was to have an email assistant. the second phase is to have the AI work automatically without invoking it with functions such as automatic summarization and instant replies. and the third phase will replace some parts of a user’s daily workflow, such as using an AI agent to schedule or compose complete emails on their behalf.
Vohra said the company could be profitable whenever it wants and it is a strategic decision. The CEO of the company said that it has five years of catwalk. So a new round of funding is not something he thinks about on a “day-to-day” basis.
Superhuman has held steady at $30 per month since launch. However, Vohra indicated that the company may review its prices later this year.
He said that in addition to investing in AI products, the company is focusing on making its teams offering stronger.
“Imagine, instead of constantly forwarding or writing an email, internally you can just share a thread. And then in that common thread, you can put comments and reactions. We’re thinking about transforming email from something that’s pure productivity to a platform for smart collaboration. And that’s a big deal because historically, email has been single-player. It was designed in an era where tools were not inherently collaborative,” Vohra said.
The company is also considering creating special edition email clients starting with Superhuman for sales aimed at account executives and account managers with integrations like Salesforce and Hubspot.
