Spectre AI Incorporated was a private software company that served various government agencies and defense contractors in the early 2000s. The company is notable for having developed and deployed the first functional presence engine in 2001 (the system predated SIRI by six years). Spectre AI's initial contract with Raytheon was the direct result of a request on the floor of the United States Congress on September 13, 2001 by Senators Judd Gregg and Ernest Hollings. This was a surprising amount of access given the company was started one year earlier in Spokane, Washington.