Music startup Thoughtful Things has launched a Kickstarter campaign for Engram, a sampler and groovebox designed for experimental sound design. Unlike tools focused on generating ready-to-use songs, Engram aims to explore "AI hallucinations" by using AI models to mangle incoming audio or create new, uncanny sounds.
Product LaunchesThoughtful ThingsEngramEvan King
Music startup Thoughtful Things launches Engram, an AI sampler for experimental sound design
The device runs "tiny AI" models locally and does not require an internet connection. According to the company, the models are custom-trained in-house using open datasets containing only audio licensed for commercial use. To support customization, Thoughtful Things plans to make the device's firmware open to allow users to tweak the system or load their own models.
Founder Evan King described the instrument as a "field recorder for latent space," noting that the device allows users to push AI audio models to their limits, drawing inspiration from the practice of circuit bending.
The Kickstarter campaign offers a limited run of Engram starting at $675. While the retail price has not been officially announced, it is expected to fall between $850 and $900 based on the campaign's discount structure.
Sources
- Engram is a sampler that turns broken AI hallucinations into music （The Verge AI, 2026-09-27）