In April, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Jony Ive announced a partnership. It would also see OpenAI acquire Ive’s io company and create a new hardware product together. If you’re wondering what kind of device OpenAI and Jony Ive are coming up with, what we do know is that it isn’t a wearable.
OpenAI and Ive aren’t creating a wearable
It’s not a stretch to think that OpenAI and Ive are developing a wearable device. We’re sure some of you might recall the Rabbit R1 that launched last year. The device was an initial hit, at least based on its marketing materials. It billed itself as an AI-first device that users could wear on their clothes.
However, in real life, it failed to live up to expectations. Thankfully, that’s not the route OpenAI and Ive are heading down. According to court filings in a trademark dispute between OpenAI and Google-backed startup iyO, it has been confirmed that OpenAI’s first hardware product isn’t going to be a wearable or an in-ear device.
This is based on a declaration by Tang Tan, a former Apple executive who co-founded io with Ive. ”The prototype Sam Altman referenced in the video is at least a year away from being offered for sale. Its design is not yet finalized, but it is not an in-ear device, nor a wearable device.”
So, what are they making?
So, if it isn’t an in-ear device or a wearable, what is it? Right now, the project remains a mystery. However, The Information reported back in April that it could be a phone-like device. We say phone-like because it isn’t like the smartphones we know today. The report suggests that it will be a screen-less device that could have phone functionality, even though it isn’t one.
If that’s true, it could be quite a massive disruptor to the market. The smartphone market is more than a decade old at this point. Any and all improvements to the hardware are marginal at best. This means that at some point, companies need to come up with something more radical and potentially paradigm-shifting.
This is where OpenAI and Ive’s partnership could come in. OpenAI is already leading the way in terms of AI with ChatGPT. Plus, with Ive’s decades of experience working at Apple and helping to design some of the company’s most iconic products, it has the potential to set a new standard.
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