OpenAI's First Devices: Speaker, Smartphone, and More

[ratspg]

They have hired Apple executives precisely to be able to put Ive's ideas on the market very quickly.

Steve Jobs pointed out that Apple had to innovate, even if that meant eroding sales of existing products. The iPhone is the heart of Apple's income, but AI has to make it evolve. The Apple Intelligence debacle indicates that they did not know how to see that this would be so, and how. OpenAI seems to have an idea: replace the visual interface of the operating systems with an always active AI assistant, using voice (or written) commands to which you can directly tell what you want. It would be the biggest revolution in the way of interacting with a computer from the Lisa interface in 1983, and it is unavoidable. I don't know if it will occur next year or within two, but if the AI becomes increasingly efficient and capable, it will take control of our actions on a computer for simple convenience. OpenAI sees it clearly and is ready to take risks, because they cannot compete with the iPhone by developing an AndroidOS or an iOS, and they need income in huge amounts. They need new ways to sell AI.

The threat of OpenAI is very real, and that explains Apple's aggressive demand.

The good news is that Apple is now correctly oriented towards the same goal, although its pace seems slower, logically, because they are in less of a hurry. This threat from OpenAI may make them accelerate.

You’re absolutely right that’s my thought about the new interface as well. Everybody else here is stuck in the past and worried about their “privacy”. The times are changing. Get on board or you’ll soon feel very very behind if you think modern OS’es on desktop and mobile are going to stay the way they are.

 

[sc00ba]

If people won't even enable Apple Intelligence on their devices because its paired with ChatGPT, what chance do these Open AI devices have when we all know about S(c)am Altman & is wonderful company?

 

[bogdanni]

I think at this point Apple can't be unseated at the top of the smartphone market. Plenty have tried but Apple still eats almost all of the profit in the industry. Meta had the right idea by going after a new category (smart glasses) rather than attempting to take on the iPhone. The other products could be interesting but I'm not expecting the smartphone to be competitive with the iPhone.

“We’ve learned and struggled for a few years here figuring out how to make a decent phone,” he said. “PC guys are not going to just figure this out. They’re not going to just walk in.”

 

[rosuna]

If people won't even enable Apple Intelligence on their devices because its paired with ChatGPT, what chance do these Open AI devices have when we all know about S(c)am Altman & is wonderful company?

There are people who distrust AI, or who did not feel interested in the internet, or smartphones, but over time everyone uses the Internet and everyone has smartphones. There are many people who are delighted to be the first to use new technologies, and who are not particularly concerned about their privacy or security (except when they do banking operations, for example). In addition, it is certain that OpenAI will offer sufficient guarantees of security and privacy. OpenAI does not need to eat the entire market to be successful: a good bite is enough when starting, being the first and advancing the necessary technologies. The irony is that Apple will be in a position to copy what OpenAI does, and they do not need to lead. The plagiarists will be the plagiarized ones, as has always happened. The situation of real danger, with Apple totally disoriented, seems to have been left behind.

 

[rosuna]

Does this mean that OpenAI’s potential smartphone will have an operating system developed by OpenAI itself?

Something similar, but not necessarily a complete operating system as we know it today. For example, they don't need an email application, because AI can do the same as the user, and all you need is a browser that shows your emails on the server. Other applications, such as those of Microsoft Office, can also run in a browser, and the same as banking applications, and almost everything today. Nor do they need to offer 100% of the functionality of a smartphone at the beginning. For example, they do not need to offer games, although they could if they run in a browser. Etc.

 

[-BigMac-]

OpenAI's hardware roadmap has sharpened considerably in recent months, with its first device now identified, a smartphone said to be arriving as soon as next year, and a wider lineup taking shape behind them.

AI Smart Speaker

OpenAI's first product is a portable, screenless smart speaker developed with former Apple design chief Jony Ive, designed to act as a personal companion in the home rather than a conventional voice assistant.

Design

The device is said to have a rechargeable battery so it can be carried between rooms, a camera for understanding its surroundings, and mechanical elements that move on their own to give a sense that it is alive. Ive and CEO Sam Altman had previously said they did not want to build a device with a screen, with Altman describing a prototype to employees as "the coolest piece of technology that the world will have ever seen."

Features

Powered by ChatGPT and using GPT-Live for conversation, the speaker will reportedly control smart home accessories, answer questions, play media, and respond to messages, becoming more personalized and proactive over time. It is also said to have a personality of its own. OpenAI reportedly does not regard the HomePod or HomePod mini as comparable products.

Price and Release Date

The speaker is expected in early 2027 at a price between $200 and $300, having slipped beyond an initial release target of this year.

AI Smartphone

Supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo first described the device in April as an "AI agent phone" built around a continuous, context-aware interface rather than individual apps, arguing that the smartphone is the only device capturing a user's full real-time state, including location, activity, communication, and context. He believes controlling both the operating system and the hardware is the only way OpenAI can deliver a comprehensive agent service.

Specifications

The phone is said to use a customized version of MediaTek's Dimensity 9600 processor built on TSMC's N2P node, also used on Apple's upcoming "A20" chips, with MediaTek now looking likely to be the sole chip supplier after Kuo initially named Qualcomm as a possible partner. Luxshare Precision Industry is believed to be the exclusive manufacturing partner, and Sunny Optical has secured component orders for two OpenAI devices, likely for camera modules.

Its headline known specification is an image signal processor with an enhanced HDR pipeline intended to improve real-world sensing through the camera, alongside two AI processors for handling vision and language tasks simultaneously.

Timeline

Mass production was originally targeted for 2028, but Kuo revised that to the first half of 2027, reflecting OpenAI's planned IPO and intensifying competition in the category. He projects combined 2027 and 2028 shipments could reach around 30 million units if development stays on track.

Other Devices

Smart glasses, a smart lamp, and potentially earbuds are also reportedly in development, though those sit further out on the roadmap and some could be cancelled. The lineup stems from OpenAI's $6.5 billion acquisition of Ive's startup io Products, alongside an aggressive recruitment campaign that has brought more than 400 former Apple employees to the company, among them designers Evans Hankey, Tang Tan, and Scott Cannon, and Vision Products Group leader Paul Meade. Apple responded with retention bonuses of up to $400,000 in restricted stock units for its iPhone Product Design team.

Apple's Lawsuit

That hiring is now the subject of litigation. Apple sued OpenAI on July 10 over the alleged theft of trade secrets, and Bloomberg's Mark Gurman argues the case is already slowing the hardware effort by deterring Apple engineers from interviewing and making suppliers wary. OpenAI says it has "no interest in other companies' trade secrets."

What Does It Mean for Apple?

Apple is separately rumored to be developing smart glasses, AirPods with cameras, an AI pendant, and a smart home hub with enhanced Siri capabilities, putting the two companies on a collision course across several categories.

Article Link: OpenAI's First Devices: Speaker, Smartphone, and More

Jony Ive. 2026.
First Ferrari, now OpenAi.
The flops have been real, guy.
Time to retire✌🏻

 

[EuropaAeterna]

Who needs another android sh*tter?

 

[EuropaAeterna]

50 million subscribers subsidize the 950 million leechers to use ChatGPT. Sounds like a great business model.

They should have the free ChatGPT tier show ads after every prompt.

 

[rikki_t]

"the smartphone is the only device capturing a user's full real-time state, including location, activity, communication, and context."............Don't the police already use a device like this, I think they call it an angle bracelet ?

 

[EuropaAeterna]

"the smartphone is the only device capturing a user's full real-time state, including location, activity, communication, and context."............Don't the police already use a device like this, I think they call it an angle bracelet ?

What angle is the bracelet for? An acute one?

 

[JTMG]

It is still a clown-show

 

[JTMG]

And Apple has done nothing. SAD!

Thats not sad. Good for them. Hahah
Those devices will fail miserably…

 

[Xade]

It’s it legal for a non-profit to have an IPO?

Isn't that what Elon Musk said?

 

[Xade]

Just please allow us to pair a Bluetooth / generic remote with it. I like to fall asleep with music and I hate calling out commands. I’d rather have volume and next track physical buttons right under my finger rather than waking myself up yelling commands lol.

That's why I still have my old B&O A8. It has a physical remote control. I don't want to use my phone to control a speaker when I'm listening to music in bed.

 

[brownbird]

HARD pass on any OpenAI hard tech in my home, pocket, or life. They haven’t earned my trust.

 

[PixelPanics]

I cannot wait honestly! It'll be fun to watch

 

[dannys1]

nah. it's the same playbook it always has been: it's to harvest data to sell to marketers and governments

See i've considered this over the last decade now. Unless you live in China there's no proof any company has harvested data for the government. Americans seem to think this would happen but in their extreme capitalist world it makes no sense unless the government was the one giving them the billions - in the UK I couldn't care less.

For marketing though yes. We've had it for years, Google, Facebook. People on here are really adverse to it - but out of all the actual bad things that can happen to us using the internet online, I think markets knowing my shopping preferences is irrelevant. Targeted ads? I don't really care - I care about seeing ads as much as Americans think I want to see them, so they get blocked. They still don't seem to be very good at targeting ads at me even when I let them see everything! Instagrams super clever algo just seems to think "you clicked on this once, here you can see it another 20 times along with two similar things).

 

[Taustin Powers]

built around a continuous, context-aware interface rather than individual apps

This part caught my interest. If they pull this off in a cool and useful way, it could be quite revolutionary.

 

[freezelighter]

Instant buy for me.
With Rokid AI Glasses incl. inner display I already don't use my phone 50% of time. Physical handheld devices will disappear between 2027 and 2029.

 

[Naraxus]

But I hate how they monetize every user with it and block out features the EU gets to the rest of the world. It’s anticompetitive

You want to blame somebody for your region not getting features other regions do, there's one entity and one entity only to blame for it

Hint, it isn't Apple

 

[JTMG]

Instant buy for me.
With Rokid AI Glasses incl. inner display I already don't use my phone 50% of time. Physical handheld devices will disappear between 2027 and 2029.

sure sure 🙂

 

[one more]

While some fresh competition is going to be a good thing, personally, I will never give that company a cent of my money...

Why not? ChatGPT, after all, pioneered AI for the masses, so if you use their services, it could be good to support them, right? It’s another question, of course, if you do not want to use ChatGPT out of a particular conviction, but then you have plenty of alternatives to choose from.

 

[attila]

Yeah good luck with that. ChatGPT isn't a brand people are loyal to. People already have their HomePods or Echoes. And for AI, Gemini and CoPilot are as much household names as OpenAI, if not more.

And the IPO is just for them to hand over financial risk to the masses before they lose their investors due to them being in the red for years.

 

[one more]

View attachment 2648575Get a load of these two fraudster BFFs.

How is Jony Ive a fraudster? He was the greatest designer who revolutionised personal IT. Look up what computers and smartphones used to look like before Ive redesigned them. You have probably posted that very picture from one of the devices designed or influenced by him.

 

[ThailandToo]

You want to blame somebody for your region not getting features other regions do, there's one entity and one entity only to blame for it

Hint, it isn't Apple

No. I think Apple is acting anti competitively. And it’s sad any government doesn’t protect their citizens like the EU does.