OpenAI's Sam Altman Says $6.5B Deal With Jony Ive To Build AI 'Companions' Could Add $1 Trillion In Company Value: Report

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reportedly shared plans to build a cluster of AI-powered devices in partnership with famed designer Jony Ive, with employees on Wednesday.

What Happened: In a conversation with staff, Altman and Ive described their vision for compact, intelligent AI "companions" designed to fit smoothly into users’ lives, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Confirming OpenAI's $6.5 billion acquisition of Ive's startup, io, he called this move "the biggest thing we've ever done as a company here," the report said.

OpenAI did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s request for comment.

Hyper-aware of its surroundings, small enough to be put in a pocket or on a desk, and created to function as a third essential gadget alongside a laptop and phone, this "companion" will not be a smartphone or wearable glasses. Instead, the object will be formulated to diminish users' dependence on screens altogether.

Why It Matters: According to Altman, the new project has the potential to alter how consumers interact with AI. He said the deal with Ive's company, which experts think could pose a threat to Apple's dominance, could add up to $1 trillion in value to OpenAI, the report added.

He also reportedly told employees that developing hardware was the only way to realize AI’s full potential and provide a direct connection to users, sidestepping intermediaries like Apple Inc. AAPL and Alphabet Inc. GOOG GOOGL. "We both got excited about the idea that, if you subscribed to ChatGPT, we should just mail you new computers, and you should use those," Altman reportedly said.

OpenAI is not projected to turn a profit until 2029, but Altman aims to ship these devices "faster than any company has ever shipped 100 million of something new before."

Altman said he and Ive realized that the hardware available currently is simply not built for the kind of AI experiences they envision. "It is not the sci-fi dream of what AI could do to enable you in all the ways that I think the models are capable of," he added.