iPhone news: Jony Ive teams up with OpenAI in $6.5B deal to create the first AI device
The ChatGPT creator is taking its boldest step into hardware yet by acquiring io, a startup co-founded by legendary Apple designer Jony Ive. The deal, valued at nearly $6.5 billion, sets the stage for OpenAI’s first AI-powered device.
OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT and GPT-4o, has announced the acquisition of io, a hardware-focused startup co-founded by former Apple design chief Jony Ive. The deal is worth approximately $6.5 billion, structured mostly in OpenAI stock. This marks OpenAI’s most significant move beyond software and into the physical world of consumer technology.
According to Bloomberg, $5 billion of the total purchase secures 77% of io, with the remaining 23% tied to OpenAI’s earlier investment in the company in 2024. The acquisition brings together more than 50 hardware, software, and manufacturing experts — many of whom previously worked under Ive — now integrating directly into OpenAI’s product development efforts.
Jony Ive returns with a vision to reinvent consumer tech
Jony Ive, who shaped the visual identity of Apple for decades — from the iMac and iPhone to the Apple Watch — left the company in 2019 to launch his creative agency LoveFrom, and later co-founded io. Ive now teams up with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman to bring a new generation of AI-native products to life. Their collaboration, which began quietly two years ago, is rooted in what they describe as “friendship, curiosity, and shared values.”
While no specific product details have been revealed, Altman and Ive hint that the first AI device could launch by 2026. Ive told Bloomberg that consumer tech hasn’t felt truly fresh in years and that people are hungry for something genuinely new. The partnership aims to deliver exactly that — not just another gadget, but a reimagining of the category.
OpenAI’s first foray into hardware faces a crowded, risky market
Until now, OpenAI has remained a software-first company, with tools like ChatGPT, DALL·E, and Codex gaining massive adoption. But hardware is a new frontier — and a risky one. Recent AI device launches such as the Humane AI Pin and Rabbit R1 have underwhelmed both users and critics, highlighting the challenge of blending useful AI with intuitive hardware.
The io team will continue to operate from its offices in Jackson Square, San Francisco, while working closely with OpenAI engineers and designers. LoveFrom is also expected to take a broader role in designing both future software interfaces and physical products. Although the deal is still pending regulatory approval, Altman remains confident. “It will be worth the wait,” he told Bloomberg.
