In a move that’s set to reshape the future of human-tech interaction, OpenAI has acquired io, the visionary AI hardware startup founded by iconic Apple designer Jony Ive, in a deal reportedly worth $6.5 billion. This landmark acquisition marks OpenAI’s most ambitious step into the hardware frontier—one that blends cutting-edge AI with world-class industrial design, promising a category-defining leap in consumer technology.
The collaboration brings with it a team of 55 elite engineers and designers, many of whom hail from Apple’s legendary design division, now united under the shared ambition of reimagining what personal technology can be. The result? A pocket-sized, screen-free, context-aware AI device that stands in stark contrast to today’s smartphones and wearables. It’s not just a new gadget it’s a redefinition of interaction, presence, and intelligence in our everyday lives.
Although Jony Ive won’t be joining OpenAI full-time, his design agency, LoveFrom, will lead the design of OpenAI’s full suite of hardware and software products. This ensures a design-first approach, one that remains independent yet deeply embedded in the DNA of everything OpenAI envisions. Ive’s enthusiasm is palpable “The first one I’ve been working on has just completely captured my imagination,” he shared, underscoring the radical creativity driving the new product.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman didn’t hold back in describing the venture, calling it potentially “the coolest piece of technology the world will have ever seen.” With that statement, he sets expectations not just for a product launch but for a paradigm shift.
This acquisition signals OpenAI’s evolution from a software powerhouse into a full-stack innovation company, poised to revolutionize how humans engage with intelligent machines. It’s not just about AI you can talk to it’s about AI that understands where you are, what you need, and how to assist you in ways that feel seamless, natural, and truly intelligent. This is more than a deal it’s the dawn of a new interface era, and OpenAI just positioned itself at the helm.
