Sam Altman and Jony Ive have been secretive about what their collaborative artificial intelligence hardware device will ultimately look like. So far, the OpenAI CEO and former Apple designer has said only that the product won’t be as bulky as a laptop or as screen-focused as a smartphone. At the same time, their latest hints also reflect the overall “vibe” of the product.
Altman told a recent event hosted by Laurene Powell Jobs’ Emerson Collective that the current device feels like walking through Times Square, with “little indignities along the way: lights flashing in my face, tension in the place, people bumping into me, noises.” He added that OpenAI’s upcoming device will evoke the feeling of “sitting in the most beautiful cabin by a lake in the mountains and enjoying the peace and quiet.”
Altman and Ive officially joined forces in May, when OpenAI acquired the designer’s hardware startup io, which was previously backed by Powell Jobs, for $6.5 billion. The acquisition puts Ive in charge of overseeing OpenAI’s work designing consumer-facing AI devices that reimagine how people interact with technology.
“What Sam and I are working on together is not a product, it’s a tentative paper. It’s a reflection on the nature of objects and our interfaces,” Ive said at the same event, declining to provide more details about the talk he gave.
Frustratingly, what the duo has revealed about their project remains very vague. The original design goal was to create something that users “wanted to lick or bite,” Altman said, adding that an early prototype was partially scrapped because it didn’t fit that description.
They seem to have crossed that threshold. Altman says their work has now produced a first prototype, which he calls “jaw-droppingly good.” The final product is expected to be out within two years, which, as he joked, gives users plenty of time to lick and bite the device to their heart’s content.
Altman and Ive have emphasized that their device will not be another smartphone and have repeatedly warned of the harmful effects of today’s mainstream technology products. Still, from the clues they provided, their approach seems to echo Apple’s sleek design language. Altman said OpenAI’s device will be “fun” and full of “whimsy,” describing it as “so small” that consumers will see it and say, “That’s it?”
Ivey also emphasizes restraint and simplicity. “I can’t stand products that are like a dog wagging its tail in your face, or products that pride themselves on solving a complex problem and want to remind you how difficult it is,” the designer said. “I like solutions that seem almost naive in their simplicity.”
While they’re trying to avoid the pitfalls of modern consumer tech devices—devices that can foster unhealthy relationships—the pair are also striving to launch a product with the same social impact as iconic products like the iPhone. When asked which device he uses the most, Altman pointed to the iPhone, calling it “the most ‘before and after’ product of my life.”
