OpenAI recruits legendary iPhone designer Jony Ive to work on AI hardware in $6.5B deal

SAN FRANCISCO – OpenAI has recruited Jony Ive, the decorator down Apple's iPhone, to pb a caller hardware task for the artificial quality institution that makes ChatGPT.

OpenAI said it is acquiring io, a merchandise and engineering institution co-founded by Ive, successful a woody valued astatine astir $6.5 billion.

OpenAI said its CEO Sam Altman had been “quietly” collaborating since 2023 with Ive and his plan firm, LoveFrom.

Ive worked astatine Apple for implicit 2 decades and is known for his enactment connected iconic iPhone, iMac and iPad designs. Ive was Apple's main plan serviceman earlier leaving the institution successful 2019 to commencement his ain plan firm.

In a associated missive posted connected OpenAI's website Wednesday, Ive and Altman said it “became wide that our ambitions to develop, technologist and manufacture a caller household of products demanded an wholly caller company.”

That's erstwhile Ive co-founded io with Scott Cannon, Evans Hankey and Tang Tan.

OpenAI said Ive volition not go an OpenAI worker and his plan collective, LoveFrom, volition stay autarkic but “will presume heavy plan and originative responsibilities crossed OpenAI and io.” Both OpenAI and Ive's plan steadfast are based successful San Francisco.

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