According to Bloomberg, OpenAI’s anticipated entry into the hardware market is slated to begin with a portable, screenless smart speaker. Here are the details.
Although OpenAI first announced its entry into the hardware market in May 2025 alongside Jony Ive’s io Products, the subject had largely faded into the background before Apple’s trade secret lawsuit brought renewed attention to what the company might be building.
Soon after the initial announcement, company iyO filed a trademark lawsuit against OpenAI and io Products, and court filings in that case offered the first clues about what the project would not be: the first device under development was neither a wearable nor an in-ear product.
Now, Bloomberg reports what the device is actually expected to be. From the report:
OpenAI’s much-anticipated push into consumer devices is slated to begin with a mobile, screen-free smart speaker designed to be a new type of home computer for the AI era, according to people familiar with the matter.
Though the new product resembles a speaker, OpenAI internally describes it as the first of its kind: a computer built for AI to help make busy people more productive. It includes a camera and other sensors that help it understand a user’s surroundings and context, as well as advanced AI models beyond those available on conventional smart speakers.
This doesn't sound compelling to me. I'm not sure I'd want to carry my phone around and prop it up if I go to a new room let along have something roughly the size of a HomePod to carry around.
The report says the device can remain plugged into a single room, but will also feature a rechargeable battery “allowing it to be carried from room to room throughout the day”:
A user could bring it into the laundry room while doing chores, move it into the kitchen for cooking assistance, and later place it in a living room or bedroom to have it play music. It can also remain plugged into a single room if the customer chooses.
The report also notes that, while comparisons to Apple’s HomePod may be inevitable, particularly in light of Apple’s trade secret lawsuit, “OpenAI believes its first product doesn’t violate any trade secrets.”
Finally, Bloomberg says the speaker is one of roughly five products OpenAI has been developing, and that its longer-term plans reportedly include “a mobile AI device capable of replacing the smartphone.” At the same time, the company has also “explored wearable products, including a pendant, and has shown interest in home robotics.”
To read Bloomberg‘s full report, follow this link.
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Marcus Mendes is a Brazilian tech podcaster and journalist who has been closely following Apple since the mid-2000s.
He began covering Apple news in Brazilian media in 2012 and later broadened his focus to the wider tech industry, hosting a daily podcast for seven years.
