Sam Altman and Jony Ive say their first AI hardware device aims to swap today’s hyperactive smartphone culture for something that feels calm, quiet, and deeply personal. The mysterious gadget, developed at their joint company IO under OpenAI, is now in prototype phase and could launch in less than two years
At Emerson Collective’s Demo Day in San Francisco, Altman joined former Apple design chief Jony Ive and Laurene Powell Jobs to tease new details of the project. While they avoided revealing the exact form factor, both described the product as a radically different kind of AI-first device, not just another iPhone-style screen.
Altman contrasted current phones and apps with “walking through Times Square,” overwhelmed by flashing notifications, noise, and constant demands on attention. He argued that modern consumer tech rarely delivers peace or focus, despite the iPhone remaining, in his view, the “crowning achievement” of product design so far.
By comparison, the IO device is meant to feel like “sitting in the most beautiful cabin by a lake, in the mountains, enjoying peace and calm.” Altman says the goal is technology that fades into the background, intervening only when truly helpful instead of constantly chasing dopamine hits and shortening attention spans.
To achieve that vibe, the gadget is being built around “incredible contextual awareness” of a user’s life, routines, and preferences. Altman suggests the AI will decide when to ask questions, when to stay silent, and when to surface information, aiming to be an “active participant” that supports without nagging.
Reports indicate the hardware is a small, likely screenless or minimal-screen companion, closer in size to an old iPod shuffle than a smartphone. The team envisions a pocketable or wearable object that can “know everything about you” by sensing your environment and context, while avoiding visual overload.
Behind the scenes, OpenAI acquired Ive’s startup io for more than six billion dollars to anchor this hardware push. Ive, famous for designing the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch, is leading a new family of AI devices that emphasize simplicity, tactility, and what he calls almost “naive” clarity of use.
Both leaders insist that emotional tone matters as much as tech specs, saying the product must “make people smile” and “feel joy” even before it shows what it can do. Early prototypes are described as “jaw-droppingly good,” with playful touches that supposedly make the object feel inviting, even “bite-worthy,” in Ive’s words.
When Laurene Powell Jobs pushed for a launch window, she asked if it would take five years, then pressed them down to two. Ive responded that the device should arrive in “even less” than two years, signaling that OpenAI and IO are preparing to turn their tranquil “cabin by a lake” vision into a real consumer gadget sooner than skeptics expected.
