Connect with us

Technologies

What to Expect (and Not Expect) From OpenAI and Jony Ive’s AI-Centric ‘Screenless Phone’

Here’s everything we know so far about the mysterious upcoming AI device from the iPhone designer and creator of ChatGPT.

AI is coming for your phones — this you know by now and maybe you’ve already experienced it for yourself in the form of Apple Intelligence or Google’s Gemini.

But OpenAI, maker of ChatGPT and perhaps the biggest name in AI software and services right now, is making a different bet. It’s looking beyond the traditional smartphone and thinking about how AI might reinvent our devices altogether.

On Wednesday, the company announced that it had bought Jony Ive’s device startup IO for $6.5 billion. Together, Ive and Altman are building something new — a device unlike anything we’ve owned before, with AI at its core.

«It became clear that our ambitions to develop, engineer and manufacture a new family of products demanded an entirely new company,» the pair said in a statement about their working relationship. «The IO team, focused on developing products that inspire, empower and enable, will now merge with OpenAI to work more intimately with the research, engineering and product teams in San Francisco.»

Ive is the visionary veteran Apple designer, who together with Steve Jobs created the iPhone, along with a long list of Apple devices. Now he’s turned his attention to creating a fresh device category, which has clearly piqued the interest of Altman. Ive’s startup has reportedly been working on a «screenless phone» — although other reports suggest it’s actually not a phone at all.

Rumors of this mysterious AI-focused device have been circulating for months but Ive and Altman are keeping a tight lid on the details, fearing that a competitor may try to beat them to market.

So, for now, we’ll just have to imagine.

The obvious existing point of comparison is the Humane AI Pin, an AI-specific device designed to be worn clipped to your collar. It launched to much fanfare in February 2024, but turned out to be a spectacular failure, creating a lasting air of pessimism around the entire idea of AI devices.

«It is unsurprising that there is skepticism about this type of product, particularly in the context of the high-profile failure of the Humane AI, which captured the imagination of tech enthusiasts, including me, but turned out to be a classic example of over-promising and under-delivering,» said Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight.

The combination of Ive and Altman though, is full of potential. «It would be foolish to bet against Jony Ive, given his remarkable track record of delivering products that disrupt a market,» said Wood.

«I have a growing sense that everything I have learned over the last 30 years has led me to this moment,» Ive said in a YouTube video in which the pair talk about their friendship.

Their challenge, says Thoman Husson, VP principal analyst at Forrester, «is not just to use AI to enhance existing tasks, but to invent new products and experiences.»

That said, OpenAI’s ambitions for its AI devices are that it’s able to ship 100 million units — a bold bet for a software company entering the hardware space for the first time, with no pre-established supply chain.

«Jony Ive is an exceptional designer but smartphones (and hardware) is a volume play about scale and scope,» said Husson. «I think Apple is still best placed to win this marathon race.»

A wearable? Glasses? A phone? Perhaps not

In the absence of any substantial hints or clues, we remain for now in the dark as to what this first piece of OpenAI hardware will look like, how it will function and how it will fit into our lives.

There’s been some speculation, based largely on claims made by reliable Apple analyst Ming Chi Kuo, that the OpenAI device will be a wearable. In a social media post, Kuo said the io product was designed to be worn around the neck and was «as compact and elegant as an iPod Shuffle.»

This would indicate that Altman and Ive are taking a different approach to Meta, which has gone all in on smart glasses. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said the glasses are the ultimate AI device, because of their ability to receive and deliver information in close proximity to your eyes and and ears.

But we should also be prepared for the possibility that Altman and Ive’s device isn’t a wearable at all. According to the Wall Street Journal, Altman said Ive was skeptical about the idea of AI wearables, making it sound unlikely that he would embrace them as part of this project.

Citing a briefing given by Altman to OpenAI employees, the WSJ reports that the device «will be unobtrusive, able to rest in one’s pocket or on one’s desk, and will be a third core device a person would put on a desk after a MacBook Pro and an iPhone.»

It’s curious to see the OpenAI screenless phone being discussed this way, almost as if it falls within Apple’s specific family of products. The WSJ said Altman is envisaging in the long term «a family of devices,» which will be defined by what Ive described as «a new design movement.»

Perhaps the only thing we know for sure about this product is that it won’t come with a screen. Altman has been critical of the amount of time we spend looking at screens — but is there room on the market for devices that tempt us away from our screens? «Except smartwatches, no new product category has emerged since the smartphone,» said Husson. «There is room for disruption and innovation.»

This not-a-phone, not-a-wearable currently exists to us only as an amorphous third thing — and likely will do for some time yet. Keep checking back for more rumors and updates, which we will add as we get more information about what kind of device may rule our lives in the near future, just as the smartphone does today.

Related Topics:

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for Nov. 22, #895

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for Nov. 22, #895.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle has a fun mix of categories. If you know your unusual foods, you should get the blue group easily enough. If you need help sorting the answers into groups, you’re in the right place. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Not a lot.

Green group hint: Like Popeye.

Blue group hint: Yum!

Purple group hint: Let’s Make a ____.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Little bit.

Green group: Sailor.

Blue group: Tropical fruits/vegetables.

Purple group: ____ deal.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is little bit. The four answers are dab, drop, splash and touch.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is sailor. The four answers are salty dog, skipper, swab and tar.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is tropical fruits/vegetables. The four answers are bitter melon, chayote, durian and soursop.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is ____ deal. The four answers are big, plea, raw and sweetheart.

Continue Reading

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for Nov. 22 #629

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle for Nov. 22, No. 629.

Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Strands puzzle is a fun one, if you know your college sports. But some of the answers are difficult to unscramble; if you need hints and answers, read on.

I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story. 

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands theme is: Ivy League

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Academics meets athletics.

Clue words to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:

  • SEAT, SEATS, SITE, BLUR, BEAT, BEATS, RATS, STAR, STARE, STARES, POUR, POURS

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:

  • BEARS, LIONS, TIGERS, QUAKERS, CRIMSON, BULLDOGS

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is SPORTSTEAM. To find it, start with the S that’s three letters to the right on the top row, and wind down.

Continue Reading

Technologies

Save $350 on the iPhone of Androids This Black Friday

The Google Pixel 9 Pro is among the best Android has to offer, and it’s easy to see why. Put one in your pocket for less this holiday season.

Black Friday deals alert: The Google Pixel 9 Pro is currently $350 off during early Black Friday sales, making it an impressive $649.

MOBILE DEALS OF THE WEEK

Deals are selected by the CNET Group commerce team, and may be unrelated to this article.

CNET’s key takeaways

While Android users swear by them, a lot of other people consider Android phones to feel overly complex. The user interface isn’t quite as easy to adjust as Apple’s offering. While it may sound unreasonable, Samsung’s Galaxy S25 range, for example, has deep menu settings that let you tweak nearly every aspect of the phone. It can feel overwhelming — and even a bit off-putting.

For many Android users, the deep customizability of the OS has always been a selling point over the more simplistic iOS found on Apple’s iPhones. But just because you want an Android phone, doesn’t necessarily mean you’re a fanatical tech nerd who wants to tinker with menus all day. 

While it’s not the latest model — the Pixel 10 Pro is $899 right now — the Pixel 9 Pro is the easiest Android phone I’ve ever used, and there are a number of reasons why. 

My experience with the Pixel 9 Pro

First, it’s Google’s own phone, meaning there’s no secondary manufacturer software skin over the top of the operating system. It’s pure, uncut Android. Google’s interface is clean, easy to read and uncluttered. Naturally, it uses Google’s own apps by default. Samsung, meanwhile, loads its phones up with its own browser, email client and photo gallery, all of which sit beside Google’s Chrome, Gmail and Photos apps, meaning you already have duplicates of each tool. 

Samsung is not the only phonemaker to do this. Almost all Android phone companies load their phones up with at least their own browser and gallery app, while some companies, like Samsung and Honor, go as far as making their own email clients and calendars. 

I recently reviewed the Honor 400 Pro, and one of the big issues I found with that phone was how much unsolicited stuff comes pre-loaded as standard. Third-party apps from TikTok, LinkedIn, WPS office, Temu and a variety of others are all there as soon as you turn it on for the first time, making the phone feel cluttered, bloated and complicated before you’ve even had a chance to install one app of your own. The Pixel has none of this.

It’s the same with AI tools. Samsung has its Bixby assistant, plus a huge variety of its own AI functions. The Honor 400 Pro packs a bunch of AI features for real-time translation and transcription, as do the OnePlus 13 and various other recent Android phones. But they all come with Google’s Gemini Advanced, too, along with Circle to Search. The Pixel doesn’t need to pointlessly double up. If you want to use AI with your phone, its tools are baked into the heart of the phone experience without you needing to also activate and sign into a third-party service.

This simple approach extends to the camera, too. Open the default camera app and you’re met with a neat interface, comprised mostly of the shutter button and zoom levels, with other shooting modes found alongside. It doesn’t try to overcomplicate things here, instead letting you quickly shoot images without messing about with settings. 

It’s an approach that works here, and as a result, the Pixel 9 Pro takes some of my favorite automatic images from a phone camera, doing a great job of balancing exposure and colors. I love the Xiaomi 15 Ultra’s camera, but to get the best from it, you need to shoot in Pro mode, taking manual control of the settings, which makes it more suited to advanced photographers who want to fine-tune their images. 

The Pixel does offer deeper control if you want it, conveniently hidden behind a small settings icon, rather than requiring you to switch completely into a «Pro» mode. For those of you wanting to take manual control of your white balance to warm up a beautiful sunset, the Pixel 9 Pro offers an easy way in.

The specs

  • 6.3-inch LTPO OLED display, 2,856×1,280 pixel resolution, 1-120Hz adaptive refresh rate
  • Google Tensor G4 processor
  • 16GB RAM
  • 4,700-mAh battery
  • 50 megapixel main camera, 48 megapixel ultrawide, 48 megapixel telephoto zoom

CNET’s key takeaways

CNET’s buying advice

Google has clearly taken notes from Apple’s approach in making the Pixel range. Apple’s phones may be derided by Android fans for their lack of customization and «locked down» nature, but iPhones are famously more simple to operate. They have integrated hardware, software and services that make them easy to understand whether you’re new to smartphones or a veteran gadget obsessive. 

Apple’s «you do things our way» approach is a big part of the phone’s success, and the Pixel 9 Pro feels like the closest approximation of the Apple experience you can find on Android. If you’re looking for a clean experience with a smartphone that doesn’t try and get in your way with needless extras, the Pixel 9 Pro is certainly worth a look.

Join Our Daily Deals Text Group!

Get hand-picked deals from CNET shopping experts straight to your phone.

By signing up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to receive recurring marketing messages at the phone number provided. Consent is not a condition of purchase. Reply STOP to unsubscribe. Msg & data rates may apply. View our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © Verum World Media