Latest news with #iyO
Gizmodo
2 hours ago
- Business
- Gizmodo
Here's Why Jony Ive and OpenAI Pulled All the Promos for Their AI Doohickey
Over the weekend, OpenAI removed all promo materials related to its $6.5 billion buddy-buddy partnership with Apple design legend Jony Ive and their still unannounced AI-centric device. This wasn't a falling out between the two titans in tech, but rather the result of something altogether stranger. The nixed webpages and videos are due to a trademark lawsuit filed by a separate startup, iyO, which is seemingly miffed about the companies names being a single letter apart. On July 20, California federal Judge Trina L. Thompson granted a temporary restraining order against OpenAI that forced it to remove all mentions of Ive's design company, 'io.' You can still find the bromance video of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Ive—who helped bring us products like the iMac and iPhone—on YouTube through unofficial uploads. A page on OpenAI's site that previously talked up its partnership with Ive now reads: '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.' What's the distinction between iyO Inc. and io, other than the inclusion of everybody's favorite sometimes vowel? iyO also makes 'hardware and software allowing users to do everything they currently do on a computer, phone, or tablet without using a physical interface.' Which is to say, it's an AI device company. Jony Ive and several other ex-Apple staff founded io in 2023. Since then, it poached some big-name Apple design stars, though the company hadn't released any real products in that time. Ive's design firm, LoveFrom, helped design a button for a separate fashion designer. iyO has been around since 2021, though its latest product—an in-ear headset called the iyO One—is still up for preorder. It's a device that claims to replace apps by letting users talk in natural language to a chatbot that then computes for you. It requires an audiologist to make an impression of your ear and costs $1,000 for a version with Wi-Fi connectivity or even more for a version with LTE. The device maker claimed in its lawsuit it is manufacturing an initial batch of 20,000 units and is still looking to raise more funds. The AI device maker sued IO Products and OpenAI earlier this month and said it was seeking an immediate restraining order and injunction to stop Ive and OpenAI from using their two-letter brand name. iyO claimed it sought some investment from OpenAI and LoveFrom, though Altman told them in March that it was 'working on something competitive so will respectfully pass.' 'Defendants [AKA OpenAI and Ive] have known about the existence of iyO, the iyO Marks, and the nature of iyO's technology since at least 2022,' the AI device maker claims in its lawsuit. 'Indeed, the parties had a series of meetings with representatives of OpenAI's principal, Sam Altman, and designers from LoveFrom Inc., a design studio founded by Jony Ive, about the prospect of iyO and OpenAI working together.' For its part, OpenAI said in response to the lawsuit it had decided not to pursue any collab or funding with iyO. The makers of ChatGPT said it surveyed many existing commercial AI devices in the run-up to its May partnership announcement. Ive even went as far as to say the Rabbit R1 and Humane Ai Pin were 'very poor products.' The name 'io' derives from a tech term referring to 'input output,' such as the 'IO ports' like USB or HDMI you may find on a typical PC. In a statement published on the opening salvo for the lawsuit, iyO cofounder Justin Rugolo said OpenAI was trying to 'trample' on the rights of his 'small startup.' Rugolo also claimed he had messaged Altman saying that investors were concerned about confusion surrounding the company's names. Rugolo complained that OpenAI had previously sued a separate artificial intelligence company, Open Artificial Intelligence, over a similar trademark claim. At the very least, this lawsuit offers a few more slim details about what Ive and Altman have in store. In its response to iyO's claims, OpenAI said, 'io is at least a year away from offering any goods or services, and the first product it intends to offer is not an in-ear device like the one Plaintiff is offering.' OpenAI further suggested whatever spins out of io will be a 'general consumer product for the mass market.' It's unlikely that we'll see work stop on whatever Ive and co. are working on. There are more hearings surrounding this trademark case slated for the months ahead. The lawsuit offers yet another glimpse into the high-stakes world of AI wearable startups and just how hard it is to come up with a device that can match the versatility of an iPhone. We'll still have to wait at least a year to see if anybody can cook up something more usable than an earpiece that lets you talk to a chatbot.
The Guardian
6 hours ago
- Business
- The Guardian
OpenAI takes down mentions of Jony Ive's io amid trademark row
OpenAI has taken down online content related to its recent deal with Sir Jony Ive's hardware startup, io, after a trademark complaint. The artificial intelligence company has removed promotional materials including a video where Ive – the former Apple designer behind the iPhone – and OpenAI's chief executive, Sam Altman, discuss the $6.4bn (£4.8bn) transaction. However, the nine-minute film can still be viewed on YouTube. OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT, was forced to act after receiving a legal complaint from iyO, a startup that makes artificial intelligence-backed earbuds. OpenAI said it had taken down a page on its website announcing the company's acquisition of io, which will involve Ive's company taking on creative and design leadership across the combined businesses. The dispute does not impact the deal itself, OpenAI added. '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,' said an OpenAI spokesperson. Ive left Apple in 2019 after a 27-year career as one of the technology company's foremost product designers. The io deal video mapped out Ive and Altman's far-reaching ambitions for the transaction, which was announced last month. Ive, who was born in the UK and whose design credits include the first iPod, iPhone, MacBook Air, Apple Watch and AirPods, said: 'I have a growing sense that everything I have learned over the last 30 years has led me to this place, to this moment.' Altman said in the video that he has been trying out a prototype Ive device and says: 'I think it is the coolest piece of technology that the world will have ever seen.' The fruits of the Ive-OpenAI partnership are not expected to emerge until next year. According to reports, the AI-enabled device will be 'unobtrusive' and capable of being fully aware of a user's surroundings and life. It will sit on a user's desk and complement a MacBook Pro and an iPhone, according to the Wall Street Journal. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Although Ive has expressed regret about the 'unintentional' negative impacts of smartphone use, Altman has said the new venture does not plan to eliminate the iPhone. 'In the same way that the smartphone didn't make the laptop go away, I don't think our first thing is going to make the smartphone go away. It is a totally new kind of thing,' Altman told Bloomberg in May. iyO has been contacted for comment.
Mint
11 hours ago
- Business
- Mint
OpenAI quietly removes all mention of Jonny Ive's ‘IO', but deal stays on: What you need to know
ChatGPT maker OpenAI has removed all the much touted promotional material and the blogpost around the $6.5 billion acquisition of former Apple designer Jonny Ive's AI startup. While one would assume that's owing to some resistance in the deal, that's not the case here with reports suggesting that a trademark dispute could have led to the removal of all the promotional material. You may be interested in As per Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, OpenAI was sued over the name IO and a federal judge later ordered the company to remove all materials that included the name. Since then, OpenAI has also updated the old blogpost to reveal that the page is down due to a copyright complaint by iyO. '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.' OpenAI said in the blogpost. Notably, OpenAI had announced the acquisition of Ive's AI startup in May along with the news that Ive and his team would be working with the ChatGPT maker to work on a new secretive hardware products. The deal involved OpenAI acquiring Ive's startup called IO products and merging his team with that of its own research and engineering departments. 'The deal is expected to be completed this summer, pending regulatory approvals. The takeover of io will provide OpenAI with about 55 hardware engineers, software developers and manufacturing experts — a team that will build what Ive and Altman expect to be a family of devices. The two executives had already been exploring some early ideas for about two years' OpenAI had said in its announcement blogpost. As per a TechCrunch report, iyO is a a generative AI company which is spun out of the Alphabet X 'moonshot factory' in 2021. The company is founded by Jason Rugolo and aims to deliver screen-free, voice first computing experience. It's first product is the iyO One earbuds that allow users to interact naturally with AI agnets for tasks like controlling music, looking up information and more. 'This is an utterly baseless complaint and we'll fight it vigorously,' a spokesperson for Ive was quoted as saying by Bloomberg.
Android Authority
12 hours ago
- Business
- Android Authority
OpenAI-Jony Ive AI hardware venture hits trademark snag over brand name
OpenAI TL;DR A blog post announcing OpenAI's $6.5B acquisition of Jony Ive's hardware startup 'io' has been taken down due to a court order stemming from a trademark complaint by a company called iyO. OpenAI clarified that despite speculation, the partnership with Ive is still ongoing, and it's exploring options regarding the name dispute. iyO, which already sells an AI-powered 'audio computer,' claims the 'io' name infringes on their trademark. All traces of OpenAI's much-hyped hardware venture with legendary Apple designer Jony Ive have suddenly disappeared due to a court order triggered by a trademark complaint. A blog post that once sat prominently on OpenAI's website was pulled without warning, briefly showing a 404 error (h/t Max Weinbach). Naturally, this sparked speculation that the partnership between Sam Altman's OpenAI and Ive had fallen apart. But the company has since clarified that's not the case. In a notice now posted on its website, OpenAI says the blog post announcing the $6.5 billion deal between Ive's startup 'io' and OpenAI was taken 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.' OpenAI The now-removed blog post from Altman and Ive stated: 'The io team, focused on developing products that inspire, empower, and enable, will now merge with OpenAI to work more intimately with the research, engineering, and product teams in San Francisco.' So who's iyO? It's a company that has already made an AI device capable of running natural language apps, think the now-defunct Humane AI Pin. The company calls its device an 'audio computer,' but at its core, it's basically an AI-powered earbud. We'll now have to wait and watch who wins the rights to the 'io' name and if OpenAI and Ive will be forced to rebrand because of the lawsuit.
Yahoo
17 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
OpenAI scrubs news of Jony Ive deal amid trademark dispute
OpenAI has removed news of its deal with Jony Ive's io from its website. The takedown comes amid a trademark dispute filed by iyO, an AI hardware startup. OpenAI said it doesn't agree with the complaint and is "reviewing our options." Turns out "i" and "o" make for a popular combination of vowels in the tech industry. Sam Altman's OpenAI launched a very public partnership with io, the company owned by famed Apple designer Jony Ive, in May. The announcement included a splashy video and photos of the two of them looking like old friends. On Sunday, however, OpenAI scrubbed any mention of that partnership from its website and social media. That's because iyO, a startup spun out of Google's moonshot factory, X, and which sounds like io, is suing OpenAI, io, Altman, and Ive for trademark infringement. iyO's latest product, iyO ONE, is an "ear-worn device that uses specialized microphones and bone-conducted sound to control audio-based applications with nothing more than the user's voice," according to the suit iyO filed on June 9. The partnership between OpenAI and io, meanwhile, is rumored to be working on a similarly screen-less, voice-activated AI device. According to its deal with OpenAI, Ive's firm will lead creative direction and design at OpenAI, focusing on developing a new slate of consumer devices. When the deal was announced, neither party shared specific details about future products. However, Altman said the partnership would shape the "future of AI." iyO approached OpenAI earlier this year about a potential collaboration and funding. OpenAI declined that offer, however, and says it is now fighting the trademark lawsuit. "We don't agree with the complaint and are reviewing our options," OpenAI told Business Insider. Read the original article on Business Insider
