Engram Transforms AI Hallucinations into Unique Musical Samples

Music startup Thoughtful Things has kicked off a Kickstarter campaign for its debut instrument, Engram. This innovative sampler and groovebox harnesses AI to manipulate incoming audio and even generate entirely new sounds. Unlike typical devices that churn out radio-ready tracks at the push of a button, Engram is designed for those looking to create experimental and unconventional audio, pushing the boundaries of AI audio models.

Engram operates without an internet connection, utilizing a “tiny AI” that runs locally. The Kickstarter page details that the model is developed in-house and custom-trained. The company emphasizes:
> “We’ve trained our audio models on open datasets that only contain audio licensed for commercial use (CC-BY or similar). We have not trained and will never train our models on non-commercial, pirated, or otherwise stolen data.”

Additionally, Thoughtful Things plans to make Engram’s firmware accessible, allowing users to modify it or upload their own custom models. In the campaign video, founder Evan King demonstrates by asking for “piano,” and Engram responds with a glitchy, abstract interpretation of the request. He describes Engram as a “field recorder for latent space,” focusing on the exploration of AI-generated sounds and experimental design. The device also draws from the concept of circuit bending, enabling users to tweak and even disrupt its compact AI models.

Thoughtful Things is offering a limited number of Engrams through the Kickstarter campaign, with pledges starting at $675. While the retail price hasn’t been disclosed, it’s expected to fall between $850 and $900, as the $675 pledge reflects a 30 percent discount.