OpenAI and Jony Ive remove ‘io' branding over trademark lawsuit dispute
OpenAI has quietly removed mention of io, the hardware startup co-founded by legendary Apple designer Jony Ive, from its website and social media channels just weeks after announcing the $6.5 billion deal.
The sudden absence of promotional materials has sparked concerns about whether OpenAI has put the deal on hold. However, OpenAI says it remains committed to the acquisition and that the content was taken offline following a court order tied to a trademark lawsuit from Iyo, a hearing device startup spun out of Google's moonshot factory.
OpenAI subsequently confirmed this, updating the original announcement page with the statement: 'This page is temporarily down due to a court order following a trademark complaint from Iyo about our use of the name 'io.' We don't agree with the complaint and are reviewing our options.' The company clarified that the issue does not affect its deal with io.
Earlier last month, OpenAI—the company behind ChatGPT—struck a deal with Jony Ive, who sold his hardware startup, io, to OpenAI. Ive will take on creative and design leadership across the merged businesses.
'I have a growing sense that everything I have learned over the last 30 years has led me to this place, to this moment,' he said in a video announcing the $6.5 billion deal.
The British-born Ive, who achieved dizzying success at Apple and helped design best-selling products such as the iPhone, iPod, iPad, and Apple Watch, has already developed a prototype io device. One of its first users is OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman.
In a nine-minute, glossy promotional video—no longer available to view on YouTube—Altman praised the mystery gadget, saying: 'I think it is the coolest piece of technology that the world will have ever seen.'
thrilled to be partnering with jony, imo the greatest designer in the world.
excited to try to create a new generation of AI-powered computers. pic.twitter.com/IPZBNrz1jQ
— Sam Altman (@sama) May 21, 2025
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
The unannounced product will be neither a phone nor a pair of glasses. Instead, Altman described it as 'unobtrusive' and capable of being fully aware of a user's surroundings and daily life. According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, the device is intended to become a third core gadget on a user's desk, alongside a MacBook Pro and an iPhone.
OpenAI has ambitious plans for the Jony Ive–designed AI device. The company reportedly has an internal goal to produce 100 million AI 'companions' that will become part of users' everyday lives.
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