OpenAI plans to develop AI 'companion' devices, integrating artificial intelligence technology into everyday life, potentially opening up new high-tech innovations, used in conjunction with laptops and smartphones.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman stated that he and designer Jony Ive are developing these secret devices for mass consumption, with plans to launch 100 million units.
Famed designer Ive joined OpenAI after his startup io was acquired by Altman's company for $6.5 billion. Reportedly, these devices will be known as the 'New Design Movement', similar to Apple's hardware and software integration.
OpenAI has raised billions from investors, and given the immense success of its ChatGPT large language model, the company is seen as a backbone of the AI industry. As of May, ChatGPT had nearly 800 million weekly active users.
These usage trends have driven OpenAI's valuation to $157 billion in October 2024, a figure that nearly doubled to $300 billion by March 2025.
Related news: Microsoft and OpenAI renegotiate investment agreement: reports
More than one 'secret' project
In addition to these mysterious devices, OpenAI's ambitions also extend into the social media space. According to a report by The Verge on April 15, the company plans to challenge Elon Musk's X and Mark Zuckerberg's Meta platforms.
Reports indicate that the new social media platform will combine ChatGPT's image generation capabilities with a social media feed similar to X. It is unclear whether the platform will be released as a standalone product or integrated into ChatGPT.
The intersection of artificial intelligence and social media has also permeated the blockchain industry, with multiple startups leveraging these technologies to build AI agents, LLM tools, and decentralized social networks.
As reported by Cointelegraph, Validation Cloud recently deployed an LLM on the Hedera network, providing decentralized finance users with easier blockchain data queries.
Related news: OpenAI's Altman seems to have rejected Musk's $97.4 billion acquisition proposal