Everything We Know About OpenAI's Plans For An AI ‘Companion'
Jony Ive, the famed designer who joined Steve Jobs to develop Apple's most popular products, will now curate new devices for OpenAI after his startup was acquired by Sam Altman's firm earlier this week, as he and Altman tease potentially screenless, fully aware AI-powered 'companions.'
OpenAI's Sam Altman called Ive, who designed several Apple products, the 'greatest designer in the ... More world.'
Altman and Ive announced OpenAI's acquisition of Ive's io in a statement Wednesday, with the deal valued at roughly $6.5 billion after OpenAI acquired 23% of io in a partnership deal in 2024.
Ive won't join OpenAI's staff as part of the deal and his design firm LoveFrom will continue to operate independently, Bloomberg reported, though LoveFrom will 'take over design for all of OpenAI, including its software,' as about 55 hardware engineers, software developers and manufacturing experts join OpenAI from io.
The first device by Ive and Altman is expected to debut in 2026, they told Bloomberg.
Ive joined Apple in 1992 and as head of design helped create the company's most iconic products—including the iMac in 1998, the iPod in 2001, the iPhone in 2007, the iPad in 2010 and the Apple Watch. After Ive announced in 2019 he would leave the company to debut his design firm, LoveFrom, Apple CEO Tim Cook applauded his tenure, saying Ive's 'role in Apple's revival [in the 1990s]' could not be overstated.
Altman told OpenAI employees Wednesday he and Ive planned to release AI 'companions,' according to a recording obtained by The Wall Street Journal. The pair signaled the device would be aware of a user's surroundings and life, could be placed in a pocket or on a desk and be featured alongside products like a MacBook Pro or iPhone, and the Journal previously reported Altman planned to create a device without a screen. Ive and Altman also indicated their device wouldn't be a new phone or something that could be worn, after earlier reports of their collaboration suggested they explored developing headphones, the 'iPhone of artificial intelligence' and other devices with cameras. They told Bloomberg their new device would allow consumers to connect with AI in 'very new ways,' as Altman suggested their first product won't 'make the smartphone go away' and be a 'totally new kind of thing.' The pair may also design new computers: Altman, who called Ive the 'greatest designer in the world,' wrote on X he was 'excited to try and create a new generation of AI-powered computers.'
Apple, whose shares have declined more than 17% in 2025, advertised the release of its iPhone 16 last year with details about the company's new 'Apple Intelligence.' The company announced earlier this year it would delay the new AI features to 2026, after it disabled Apple Intelligence summaries for news apps when some users discovered the company's AI system inaccurately displayed story facts. Apple was sued in March by consumers alleging the company falsely advertised its AI features, with 'a clear and reasonable consumer expectation' that AI would be available at the iPhone's release, according to a filing in the U.S. District Court in San Jose (Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Forbes). Ive has reportedly expressed interest in developing an AI device for years, telling Bloomberg early AI devices like the Human Ai Pin are 'very poor products.' Ive co-founded io in September 2023, as it 'became clear that our ambitions to develop, engineer and manufacture a new family of products demanded an entirely new company,' Ive and Altman wrote. Ive reportedly planned to build and sell an AI device with io using OpenAI's technology before Altman pushed for their companies to combine.
OpenAI's talks to acquire io were first reported in March. The companies were said to be developing a device that would include technology from the movie 'Her,' a 2013 film in which the main character develops a relationship with a voice AI companion. OpenAI and io agreed to a partnership last year that involved OpenAI acquiring a 23% stake in the company, according to Bloomberg. The acquisition is the latest by OpenAI in the company's apparent push to release physical devices, following the release of its popular AI chatbot ChatGPT in 2022, after the company hired the former head of Meta's augmented reality glasses project in November. That same month, OpenAI reportedly invested in the robot startup Physical Intelligence.
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