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After 5 years away from his role as the lead designer of the iPhone and founding his design firm, LoveFrom, Jony Ive is working with OpenAI’s Sam Altman on AI-powered hardware, aiming to develop a device that enhances user experience with AI.
This was confirmed in a New York Times profile of Ive, almost a year after initial reports about a potential partnership with Altman to develop an “iPhone of artificial intelligence,” backed by over $1 billion from SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son.
Information about the project remains limited. Ive is said to have met Altman via Brian Chesky, the CEO of Airbnb. Funding comes from Ive, the Emerson Collective, founded by Laurene Powell Jobs, and Thrive Capital, a venture capital firm connected to OpenAI. According to The NY Times, the initiative could potentially secure $1 billion in funding by year’s end. However, the article does not mention Masayoshi Son.
The project has a small team of 10 employees, including Tang Tan, who led iPhone product development, and Evans Hankey, his successor as Apple’s head of design. LoveFrom is leading the design efforts from a 32,000-square-foot office in San Francisco, situated within a $90 million real estate investment that Ive has purchased within a single city block.
“The next big thing”
The device is described in the profile as “a product that uses A.I. to create a computing experience less socially disruptive than the iPhone.” The New York Times notes that Ive and Altman have explored how generative AI can facilitate the development of a new computing device capable of handling complex user requests more efficiently than conventional software. Rumors suggest it may draw inspiration from the original iPhone and touchscreen technology.
Fascinating profile on Jony Ive’s ambition and approach at LoveFrom, continuing to work with Marc Newson and friends, taking risks, building community in SF.
Very different from how Apple operates.
He is embracing San Francisco and California to a whole new level now, love it!… pic.twitter.com/aNeTx3Mu8K
— Waqas Ali (@waqasali) September 22, 2024
The project is being kept under wraps, and Marc Newson, an industrial designer who joined Apple in 2014 and later worked with Ive at LoveFrom, stated that the product’s details and release timeline are still being finalized.
In the past year, several generative AI devices, like the Humane AI Pin and Rabbit R1, were touted as “the next big thing.” However, both flopped, primarily because consumers seem to prefer using AI services on their smartphones rather than dedicated AI hardware.
