OpenAI’s mysterious AI-powered hardware device could cost between $300 and $400 and take the form of a doughnut-shaped smart speaker, according to a new Bloomberg report.
The device is expected to serve as a physical extension of ChatGPT, giving users another way to interact with OpenAI’s AI assistant around their homes. Bloomberg reports that its shape will allow people to move it between locations such as a bedside table and kitchen counter.
The speaker is reportedly being designed with a premium appearance and constructed from high-quality metal. It will also contain moving parts, although it remains unclear exactly how those components will work or what purpose they will serve.
The potential $300 to $400 price tag would put OpenAI’s device well above many existing smart speakers. Amazon’s smart home speakers, for example, generally range from about $40 to $240.
OpenAI aims at hardware
The move into smart home hardware could help OpenAI integrate ChatGPT more deeply into people’s everyday lives. Instead of requiring users to pick up a phone or open a computer, the device could provide a dedicated way to interact with an AI assistant throughout the home.
However, the smart speaker market has historically been difficult to monetise, and OpenAI would be entering a category already dominated by established technology companies. A premium price could make that challenge even greater.
The device is being developed in partnership with LoveFrom, the design studio founded by former Apple design chief Jony Ive. Bloomberg reports that OpenAI is targeting a launch sometime in 2027.
OpenAI’s hardware ambitions are also unfolding amid a legal dispute with Apple. Apple has sued OpenAI, accusing the company of taking trade secrets from former Apple employees who joined the AI lab. OpenAI has denied wrongdoing.
If OpenAI ultimately launches the device at the reported price, it would mark one of the company’s most significant attempts yet to move ChatGPT beyond software and into a physical product.
