OpenAI announced the acquisition of the startup io, founded by legendary designer Jony Ive. The deal amount is six and a half billion dollars. From now on, Ive will lead the design and creative direction of all OpenAI products. Together with Sam Altman, the company plans to create an entirely new line of devices based on generative AI.
The first details about the mysterious device have already sparked the audience’s imagination. According to The Wall Street Journal , the novelty will be compact, without a screen, but with a camera and microphones for recognizing the environment. One of the main ideas is to wear the device around the neck, although the final form remains a mystery. Sam Altman emphasized that it will not be a phone or glasses, and Ive is skeptical about devices that need to be constantly worn on the body.
A special emphasis is placed on the device becoming the “third main gadget” after the laptop and smartphone — it is intended to be an invisible assistant, constantly integrated into the user’s daily life. OpenAI confidently predicts that the novelty will sell in incredible quantities, promising to reach one hundred million shipments faster than any other technology in history.
The partnership between Ive and Altman is already being called the most unexpected collaboration of the year, as the combination of iconic design and advanced AI developments could significantly impact the personal device market. The first products are promised to be presented as early as two thousand twenty-six.
