One of the mysterious AI devices that OpenAI is considering developing with Apple’s former chief design officer, Jony Ive, “resembles a smart speaker without a display,” The Information reports. People “with direct knowledge of the matter” told the publication that OpenAI has already secured a contract with Luxshare, and has also approached Goertek — two of Apple’s product assemblers — to supply components like speaker modules for its future lineup of AI gadgets.
OpenAI has also considered building glasses, a digital voice recorder, and a wearable pin, according to sources speaking to The Information, with the first products being targeted for release in late 2026 or early 2027.
In May, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said that he envisioned a “family of devices” being born from the partnership with Ive, the first of which was described as being pocket-size, contextually aware, and screen-free. That tracks with these new rumors about OpenAI’s first device, but this is the first time that information has leaked about additional gadgets.
Altman previously said that OpenAI’s first AI device wouldn’t be a pair of glasses, but these rumors suggest that smart eyewear may follow its initial product launch. An AI pin would be a surprising addition, given Ive wasn’t keen to develop a body-wearable and had slammed the Humane AI Pin. Previous reports also suggest that Altman and Ive have considered developing an in-ear device, which is notably absent in this rumored upcoming product lineup.
The Information’s sources say the ChatGPT maker has started tapping into Apple’s supply chain network in China to help produce these devices. Luxshare is a major assembler of iPhones and AirPods, while Goertek assembles AirPods, HomePods, and Apple Watches. Apple reportedly canceled a meeting with manufacturing and supply chain teams in China last month over concerns it would keep executives away from the company’s US headquarters, at a time when they were needed to prevent defections to OpenAI, according to The Information, citing an unnamed person “who was informed of the decision.”
Apple employees who worked on the company’s consumer hardware have also increasingly jumped ship to OpenAI since its partnership with Ive’s IO startup was announced. Tang Tan — OpenAI’s current chief hardware officer, and former Apple product design head — has promised people being poached from Apple that they will “encounter less bureaucracy and more collaboration at OpenAI,” a person familiar with Tang’s outreach told The Information.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
