In an OpenAI assembly Wednesday, CEO Sam Altman revealed formidable plans to develop AI-powered units in partnership with former Apple design chief Jony Ive, concentrating on the discharge of 100 million “AI companion” units that might reshape how customers work together with synthetic intelligence, in line with a brand new report.
Altman described it to workers as a “likelihood to do the most important factor we’ve ever completed as an organization.” OpenAI’s acquisition of Ive’s io startup is the corporate’s boldest {hardware} enterprise but, probably creating the primary main different to smartphone and laptop dominance.
And on Thursday, TF Worldwide Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo weighed in with doable particulars about OpenAI’s wearable system.
New particulars leak about Sam Altman and Jony Ive’s ‘AI companions’
Within the assembly, Altman advised OpenAI workers concerning the $6.5 billion acquisition of Ive’s startup, io, projecting the partnership may add $1 trillion in worth to OpenAI, in line with a recording reviewed by The Wall Avenue Journal. It seems to sign the corporate’s dedication to compete immediately with Apple and Google within the {hardware} house.
The system represents what Ive calls “a brand new design motion” away from the screen-centric method that has outlined smartphones and computer systems. Not like conventional units, OpenAI’s system can be “totally conscious of a consumer’s environment and life,” in line with The WSJ, whereas remaining unobtrusive sufficient to relaxation in a pocket or on a desk. Altman reportedly described it because the “third core system” that customers would place alongside their MacBook Professional and iPhone.
Ive, who formed Apple’s iconic merchandise from the iMac to the iPhone alongside Steve Jobs, expressed enthusiasm about his partnership with Altman.
“The best way that we clicked, and the best way that we’ve been capable of work collectively, has been profound for me,” Ive stated throughout the assembly, drawing parallels to his legendary partnership with Jobs.
Past the smartphone paradigm (and never glasses)
My business analysis signifies the next concerning the brand new AI {hardware} system from Jony Ive’s collaboration with OpenAI:
1. Mass manufacturing is anticipated to start out in 2027.
2. Meeting and transport will happen outdoors China to cut back geopolitical dangers, with Vietnam at present the… pic.twitter.com/5IELYEjNyV— 郭明錤 (Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo) Might 22, 2025
For Apple customers accustomed to the corporate’s built-in ecosystem, OpenAI’s method presents an intriguing different. Altman particularly famous the system received’t be a telephone or glasses, addressing issues about wearable expertise that Ive beforehand expressed skepticism about. As a substitute, the main target seems to be on creating what Altman calls “a household of units” that might problem Apple’s hardware-software integration mannequin.
“The present prototype is barely bigger than the [Humane] AI Pin, with a kind issue as compact and stylish as an iPod Shuffle,” Ming-Chi Kuo wrote Thursday on X. “One of many meant use circumstances is sporting the system across the neck. It should have cameras and microphones for environmental detection, with no show performance. It’s anticipated to hook up with smartphones and PCs, using their computing and show capabilities.”
The collaboration emerged from OpenAI’s recognition that current units restrict AI’s potential. ChatGPT modified individuals’s expectations concerning the energy of expertise, however it’s nonetheless utilized in an previous paradigm. Altman stated the brand new system “shouldn’t be the sci-fi dream of what AI may do to allow you in all of the ways in which I feel the fashions are able to.”
Nonetheless, Kuo pointed to a majority of these AI units as the best way of the longer term.
“AI built-in into real-world functions, typically termed ‘bodily AI,’ is widely known as the subsequent essential development,” he wrote.
Market challenges forward
Picture: @BenGeskin, X.com
The enterprise faces vital hurdles in a market dominated by Apple and Google, whose software program runs just about all smartphones worldwide. Latest makes an attempt by AI {hardware} startups — together with Humane with its Ai Pin, which Altman beforehand invested in — have struggled to realize client traction. OpenAI’s monetary challenges add one other layer of complexity. The corporate expects to lose $44 billion earlier than reaching profitability in 2029.
Nonetheless, Altman stays optimistic concerning the timeline, concentrating on a late 2026 launch whereas promising to “ship 100 million units quicker than any firm has ever shipped 100 million of one thing new earlier than.” The formidable scale displays OpenAI’s perception that direct {hardware} entry represents the one path to reaching customers with out counting on Apple and Google’s platforms.
