Tech hardware has a new entrant. We finally have concrete details regarding OpenAI’s first devices: speaker, smartphone, and more. Leaked documents reveal a rechargeable assistant and a custom phone designed to eliminate traditional apps entirely.
Former Apple design chief Jony Ive led the development of the smart speaker. Because his team completely abandoned touchscreens, they had to rethink user interaction from scratch. Built-in cameras help the hardware understand its immediate surroundings. Mechanical parts on the speaker move independently. And that specific physical movement creates a distinct sense that the machine is actually alive.
The Screenless Smart Speaker
OpenAI missed its initial 2026 release target. The speaker is now expected in early 2027 with a retail price between $200 and $300. Thanks to a battery, users can carry the unit freely from room to room. Both Ive and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman explicitly refused to build a device with a screen.
The speaker runs on GPT-Live and ChatGPT for daily voice interactions. It controls home accessories, answers questions, plays media, and replies to text messages. The software also becomes more proactive over time. It learns exactly what users are looking for. Altman previously described an early prototype to employees as “the coolest piece of technology that the world will have ever seen.” OpenAI doesn’t view the Apple HomePod as a comparable competitor.
The Agent-Driven Smartphone
A dedicated OpenAI smartphone could arrive as early as next year. Supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo described this mobile device as an “AI agent phone” back in April. Instead of standard individual applications, the interface relies on continuous AI interactions. Kuo argued that smartphones remain the only devices capable of capturing a user’s physical state.
To deliver a capable agent, OpenAI must control both the hardware and the operating system. The company is actively designing a custom processor alongside MediaTek and Qualcomm, according to supply chain reports published this spring. Luxshare Precision Industry will manufacture the phone exclusively. Kuo projected potential shipments of 300 to 400 million units. That’s massive scale. And OpenAI clearly wants it.
Apple’s Retaliation Highlights the Cost of Hardware Independence
Hardware independence requires aggressive hiring. On July 10, 2026, Apple filed a 40-page trade secret theft lawsuit against OpenAI in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The Cupertino company alleges OpenAI poached over 400 former Apple employees to jumpstart its hardware division. Apple specifically named Tang Tan in the trade secret lawsuit filed recently.
Tan spent 24 years at Apple. Before leaving, he rose to vice president of product design. He now serves as OpenAI’s Chief Hardware Officer. According to the court filing, Tan directed job candidates to bring actual Apple components to their interviews. Former Apple senior electrical engineer Chang Liu is also named in the documents. Apple alleges Liu used an unreturned laptop to download dozens of confidential files about unreleased Apple products.
But the hostilities started much earlier. In May 2025, OpenAI acquired io Products for $6.5 billion. Jony Ive and Tang Tan actually co-founded that specific startup. AI models currently rely on Apple and Google for distribution. So OpenAI is building its own glass and silicon to escape that dependency entirely.