OpenAI buys ex-Apple designer Jony Ive's io for $6.4 bn in AI expansion

The acquisition gives OpenAI full control of the Jony Ive's io, an AI-first hardware company, as it moves to build new AGI-era devices beyond smartphones and traditional interfaces

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OpenAI has acquired the hardware start-up io, founded by former Apple design chief Sir Jony Ive, in a $6.4 billion all-equity deal, according to the Financial Times. The move is part of OpenAI's push to move beyond smartphones and build new devices that are optimised for the AI-first world.

 

Having already held a 23 per cent stake in the company, OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, paid $5 billion in equity to acquire the remaining 77 per cent.

 

All 55 employees of io will transition to OpenAI, though Ive himself will not join as an employee. Instead, he will serve as a consultant for OpenAI while continuing to lead his independent design studio, LoveFrom.

 

What is io?

io is a hardware company founded in 2023 by Jony Ive and Sam Altman, aimed at creating devices designed from the ground up for artificial intelligence. Unlike traditional tech products that add AI as a feature, io focuses on making AI the core of the user experience. The company brings together a small, high-calibre team, including former Apple designers, to explore how hardware can be reimagined when built specifically for AI-driven interaction.  ALSO READ | OpenAI replaces GPT-4.0 mini with GPT-4.1 series models in ChatGPT: Details

 

OpenAI eyes AGI future

OpenAI described the acquisition as a major step toward its goal of creating a “family of products for the AGI era", referring to artificial general intelligence systems that match or exceed human capabilities.

 

“We have the opportunity here to completely reimagine what it means to use a computer,” said CEO Sam Altman in a video announcement on Wednesday.

 

AGI represents a future where AI possesses general, human-level intelligence. OpenAI aims to develop devices built specifically for that world, one where traditional screens, keyboards, and interfaces may no longer be adequate.

 

Although details about the hardware remain undisclosed, one insider told the Financial Times it was “something totally different to a phone... a completely new surface".  ALSO READ | Can AI guide your health questions? OpenAI's HealthBench puts it to test

 

What will Jony Ive's role be at io after OpenAI's acquisition?

Sir Jony Ive, known for designing Apple’s most iconic devices such as the iPhone, iPod, MacBook, and Apple Watch during his nearly 30-year tenure at the company, will assume creative and design responsibilities across OpenAI and io, bringing decades of product experience to a new frontier. His work, OpenAI says, will help shape how we interact with AI, not just through software, but through beautifully considered physical devices designed from the ground up for an AGI world.

 

OpenAI’s partnership with Apple, announced in December 2024, has already integrated ChatGPT into Siri and writing tools, as part of Apple’s broader 'Apple Intelligence' initiative. Still, Apple has faced delays in rolling out certain AI features, as it attempts to modernise its voice assistant.