# OpenAI’s Chat Robot > Source: > Published: 2026-07-15 14:44:26+00:00 # OpenAI’s Chat Robot Well, it looks like we won't have to wait for a legal discovery process to uncover what hardware device OpenAI is working on. In what feels awfully like a coordinated leak, [Mark Gurman of Bloomberg got](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-07-14/openai-s-first-device-will-be-moveable-screenless-speaker-built-as-ai-companion?ref=spyglass.org) a lot of details about what is easiest to describe as an AI-driven smart speaker, but that *clearly*OpenAI won't frame that way: OpenAI’s much-anticipated push into consumer devices is slated to begin with a mobile, screen-free smart speaker designed to be a new type of home computer for the AI era, according to people familiar with the matter. The product — still under development — is meant to serve as a humanlike AI companion that lives in the home, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the project hasn’t been announced. It will help control smart-home appliances, play media, answer questions, respond to messages and tap into the range of capabilities offered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT, they said. None of this is particularly surprising – in fact, it all sounds [largely in-line](https://x.com/mgsiegler/status/2077140940393791950?ref=spyglass.org) with the product I guessed OpenAI was building immediately after [they announced](https://spyglass.org/openai-io-altman-ive/) the acquisition of io, Jony Ive's startup. While many assumed the two companies would team up to focus on building [an AI wearable device](https://spyglass.org/apple-ai-pin-wearable/) – which were [all the rage](https://spyglass.org/ai-consumer-hardware/) at [the time](https://spyglass.org/chat-gpt-pin/), led by [the ill-fated](https://spyglass.org/humane-ai-pin-strategy/) (and Sam Altman-backed) [Humane AI Pin](https://spyglass.org/humane-ai-pin-brutal-review/) – my guess was, well, more or less what it sounds like they're gearing up to launch. Back in May 2025, [in a piece entitled 'The Anti iPhone', I wrote](https://spyglass.org/the-anti-iphone/): The problem with a full-on wearable in this regard is that everyone focuses far too much on the whole wearable part. That is, the exterior of the device and how it will work on your body. And then: how can I get the technology to work on that? But I suspect that OpenAI/IO are focused on the opposite: what's the best device to use this technology? Why does it have to be wearable? To be clear, I suspect that whatever the device is, it will look fantastic – this is[an Ive/LoveFrom][production],[after all]– but that's mainly because beautiful products bring a sense of delight to users and can spur usage. I suspect the key to the design here will be yes:[how it works]. And again, I suspect that will be largely based around voice, and perhaps augmented by a camera. By October of that year, as some details started to [trickle out](https://www.ft.com/content/58b078be-e0ab-492f-9dbf-c2fe67298dd3?ref=spyglass.org&syn-25a6b1a6=1) about the direction OpenAI/io was taking, the focus seemed more clear. "A small, screen-less digital companion for you life," [I wrote at the time](https://spyglass.org/openai-digital-assistant-device-jony-ive/). Another [leak](https://www.theinformation.com/articles/inside-openai-team-developing-ai-devices?ref=spyglass.org&rc=lsmcir) in February 2026 nudged us even further in the direction of [a smart speaker-like device](https://spyglass.org/openai-smart-speaker/). Back to Gurman's report today: OpenAI’s success in hardware will hinge on bringing a novel approach to the market — something it aims to do with the smart speaker. For instance, the device’s technology is meant to become increasingly personalized and proactive as it gains a deeper understanding of its owner over time, according to the people. OpenAI envisions the device anticipating needs, surfacing information proactively and serving as an expert on its user, they said. Though the speaker is designed to stay in the home, it will be easy to move around the house. The key to this device, of course, will be voice. That is, voice-based AI. The writing has been on the wall there since at least [the launch of GPT-4o](https://spyglass.org/its-all-about-the-o/), but if the intent was to be more than simply a better Alexa or HomePod, it felt like [a couple more breakthroughs were needed](https://spyglass.org/vocal-computing-ai/). And what do you know, with the launch of GPT-Live... here we are! [As I wrote just last week](https://spyglass.org/gpt-live/) (which feels like *months ago* in OpenAI-land): Anyway, it feels like we're now fully on the cusp of a true shift in computing. Yes, I've long thought this, but it's step-by-step happening. And these new GPT-Live capabilities seem like they're going to unlock the space to the point where[new devices]may now be not just possible,[but inevitable]. For now, these models and capabilities will be awesome to use on smartphones and laptops. While one aspect of the demo that Siri head Mike Rockwell gave during the WWDC keynote was undoubtedly because voice gives a far better demo than text,[it also seems pretty clear]that we're about to see millions of people out in the wild hitting a button to chat – vocally – with Siri. Finally. And perhaps those who get really into this method of interaction start to venture into even more robust models such as those offered now by GPT-Live. And perhaps OpenAI leverages those capabilities to launch[their own device]sometime in the next several months. And perhaps many others follow suit once it's clear that this is[a new path forward for computing]. Inevitable, indeed. Back to Gurman: The device’s communication abilities will rely on a more advanced version of the[ChatGPT Voice Mode]— GPT-Live — that OpenAI rolled out this month. The new voice mode is designed to act more like a human. It can listen and talk at the same time, adapt more naturally during conversations, and quickly process information. Though the new product resembles a speaker, OpenAI internally describes it as the first of its kind: a computer built for AI to help make busy people more productive. It includes a camera and other sensors that help it understand a user’s surroundings and context, as well as advanced AI models beyond those available on conventional smart speakers. But wait, what's that in the room next to this new OpenAI device? It's an elephant! In the form of [a lawsuit](https://spyglass.org/apple-vs-openai/) just filed by Apple against OpenAI. While perhaps not explicitly about *this* device, it's obviously going to get roped in here. Because [what underpins the entire thing](https://spyglass.org/apple-v-openai-lawsuit-lines/) is the notion of OpenAI [poaching people](https://spyglass.org/apple-hopes-this-email-found-openai-well/) from Apple and allegedly stealing their IP and trade secrets to bolster OpenAI's fledgling hardware efforts. To quote Apple, "As a natural result, OpenAI's nascent hardware business now rests on the shakiest of foundations, rotten to its core by its illegal reliance on misappropriated trade secrets." To hear OpenAI – sorry, Gurman's sources – tell it: Apple[sued OpenAI last week], accusing the company of stealing trade secrets. But OpenAI believes that the device veers significantly from anything Apple has on the market today and that it’s unlikely that it violates trade secrets belonging to the iPhone maker, the people said. While this would-be device obviously doesn't sound like an iPhone and again, OpenAI is going to frame this very differently than a smart speaker such as the aforementioned HomePod, lawsuit aside, that general space now feels like *yesterday's* technology because of [the previous success of Alexa](https://spyglass.org/alexa-ai/) and the like – still, there are likely going to be some overlaps. The question will be just how many and if any of them crossed the chasm in the alleged information taken from Apple. Of course, that may also take *years* to uncover, depending on if/when this actually goes to trial. And that's why Apple is seeking injunctions to stop OpenAI from using their IP *right now*. So even these next few months are going to be interesting... And wait, while everyone seems to be focused in on the possibility that OpenAI would infringe Apple's *known* products, what if this is all really about the *unknown/unreleased* ones? Certainly the lawsuit makes it clear that the "show and tell" of prototypes was key – i.e. they weren't bringing iPhones to those meetings (allegedly). In fact, reading today's report, I'm reminded of not just the tabletop/mounted '[FacePod](https://spyglass.org/the-imac-desk-lamp-homepod/)'/'[HomePad](https://spyglass.org/apples-new-hip-to-be-square-home-device-2/)' that has been [rumored](https://spyglass.org/facepod-ipad-robot-arm/) for years – and [likely delayed](https://spyglass.org/apple-homepad-delay-siri/) by Apple's AI woes – but other potential products that Apple's own [published research papers](https://arxiv.org/abs/2501.12493?ref=spyglass.org) have uncovered. Even better, [a video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHJa_CyJjdc&ref=spyglass.org). In February 2025, I wrote about "[Apple's Elegantly Expressive Pixar Lamp](https://spyglass.org/apple-pixar-lamp-robot/)": I don't know that this will be[the first such robotic product]that Apple launches. It sounds like the first could be a bit more stationery. But this is one that I would bet that Apple will try to launch at some point in the next few years. The only real question is if they'll be allowed to call it "Luxo" or the like. If Steve Jobs were still with us, absolutely that would have happened. Will Disney greenlight Apple using their IP given the Jobs legacy? I mean, you'd have to imagine Bob Iger would see it as a branding win/win, but will Iger[still be around]at that point?... Forget the HomePod, or even 'HomePad' (again, this OpenAI device has no screen), *this* is the device that immediately jumped to my mind. It's a simple robot meant to bring joy and delight into a home by way of expressive actions driven by AI. Apple, of course, didn't have the voice chops to make it work at the time, but now, thanks to Google, [they probably do](https://spyglass.org/siri-ai/)! So I can't help but wonder how much overlap there is between whatever OpenAI is trying to do with this first device and what Apple is doing [within their labs](https://spyglass.org/apples-wall-e-robots/)... That, I imagine, may be the key to all of this. At the same time, as I noted the other day, even if OpenAI is worried about any of this – and again, they're telegraphing that they're not – they may feel the need to push forward anyway. This hardware initiative is *that* important to [the future](https://spyglass.org/openai-local-ai-device/) of the company. And I suspect that Ive's team will have built something super compelling: OpenAI believes the product’s defining feature will be its personality and ability to connect on a humanlike level with users. The speaker incorporates mechanical elements that can move on their own, creating a sense that it is alive and not just an object responding to commands. The machine also will draw on personal information such as emails to better understand its owner. The goal is for the device to feel like a companion and become a physical manifestation of OpenAI’s ChatGPT. A cute tabletop robot that does your email for you? Sign me up. **Previously, on** **Spyglass** **...**