OpenAI Acquires Apple Designer Jony Ive's Startup in $6.5B Deal to Build AI Devices

OpenAI is officially entering the hardware space-and it is doing so with one of Apple's greatest design thinkers at the helm. In a $6.5 billion deal, OpenAI has purchased io Products, a startup led by Apple legend Jony Ive- the man behind the design of iMac, iPads and iPhones- to build a whole new suite of AI-powered consumer devices for the company. Jony will serve as the creative head for developing next-gen AI -powered devices. 

This is the biggest hardware push to date by OpenAI, the parent company of ChatGPT, as it plans to bring its artificial intelligence models into the physical realm in the form of powerfully designed, thoroughly embedded products.

“The io team, focused on developing products that inspire, empower and enable, will now merge with OpenAI to work more intimately with the research, engineering and product teams in San Francisco,” Sam and Jony said in a joint statement. 

io was founded in 2024 by Ive and a group of ex-Apple executives Scott Cannon, Evans Hankey, and Tang Tan. For the last two years, io has worked behind the scenes with OpenAI. Jointly announcing their collaboration in a statement on Wednesday, the group has transitioned from tentative drawings to the building blocks for a next generation of smart devices.

““I have a growing sense that everything I have learned over the last 30 years has led me to this moment. While I am both anxious and excited about the responsibility of the substantial work ahead, I am so grateful for the opportunity to be part of such an important collaboration. The values and vision of Sam and the teams at OpenAI and io are a rare inspiration,” said Ive. 

The ideas were important and valuable. They made everyone smile," wrote Ive and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. "They brought back memories when we celebrated human achievement, thankful for new tools that assisted us in learning, discovering, and creating.

Although neither company has gone into detail about the first product, it's generally assumed that the partnership might create a next-gen AI assistant -something more intimate, intuitive, and stunningly designed than anything available today. Consider beyond phones and laptops, this might transform how humans interact with AI on a daily basis.

The deal brings about 55 of io's top engineers and developers to OpenAI, with the first products being released in 2026. Ive and his design company LoveFrom will now be in a richly involved creative leadership position at both OpenAI and io, working on the vision for AI-powered hardware. 

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