Sam Altman describes OpenAI’s planned AI device in vibes
OpenAI is venturing into the realm of physical AI devices, aiming to create a product that could potentially redefine the consumer experience in technology. Following a series of lukewarm receptions for previous devices, such as the Rabbit R1 and the Humane Pin—which was discontinued just a year after its launch—OpenAI’s upcoming offering is attracting attention. CEO Sam Altman recently shared insights about this new device during an interview at Emerson Collective’s 9th annual Demo Day in San Francisco. Collaborating with Apple’s former chief designer, Jony Ive, OpenAI is working on a screenless AI companion that promises to deliver a unique user experience, one that diverges from the chaotic notifications and distractions typical of modern devices.
Altman expressed his vision for the device, emphasizing a shift towards a more serene and user-friendly interaction with technology. He likened the current experience of using devices to navigating a bustling Times Square, filled with overwhelming notifications and distractions. Instead, he envisions an AI companion that embodies tranquility, akin to “sitting in the most beautiful cabin by a lake.” This device aims to foster a peaceful environment, allowing users to focus on their lives without the incessant interruptions that characterize most current technology. Altman believes that such a harmonious experience is unattainable with existing devices, and he is determined to create an AI that is contextually aware and capable of managing tasks over extended periods, thus earning user trust.
While specifics about the device remain sparse, the ambition behind it is clear. Altman and Ive hope that when consumers finally see the product, they will be struck by its simplicity, yet impressed by its capabilities. The timeline for release is set for less than two years, and both leaders are optimistic about achieving a breakthrough that previous devices failed to deliver. As OpenAI continues to refine its concepts and address technical challenges, the tech community watches closely to see if this ambitious project can indeed rise above the disappointments of its predecessors and offer a genuinely transformative experience in personal technology.
So far, physical AI devices have not been a hit with consumers. The much-talked-about Rabbit R1 didn’t receive rave reviews from Mashable when we
reviewed it
last year, and now it’s sort of
languishing in tech purgatory
. The other highly anticipated device, the Humane Pin, was
already killed off
in February, just one year after it launched.
Will OpenAI’s device have better luck? OpenAI CEO Sam Altman seems to think so, according to what he had to say about it in a
new interview
.
If you haven’t yet heard, OpenAI is currently working on an AI hardware product with Apple’s former chief designer
Jony Ive
. So far, what
is known
about OpenAI’s device is that it’s a small screenless AI companion, which already sounds much like the other physical AI devices that came before it. The last we heard about OpenAI’s AI device was that it was
facing delays
due to technical difficulties with both the software and hardware for the product.
OpenAI’s ‘vibes’-based AI device
Over the weekend, Altman
spoke more
about OpenAI’s AI device in an interview at Emerson Collective’s 9th annual Demo Day in San Francisco with Laurene Powell Jobs. While Altman didn’t give too many more details about the device in terms of specifics, he did explain the “vibe” that OpenAI is going for with the product.
“I think the iPhone is like thus far, the crowning achievement of consumer products. It’s an amazing thing,” Altman said before launching into a criticism of the iPhone to Steve Jobs’ widow. “But one of the things that has gone wrong is when I use current devices or most applications, I feel like I am walking through Times Square in New York and constantly just dealing with all the little indignities along the way: flashing lights in my face, tension going here, people bumping into me.”
Altman explained that flashing notifications from all the various apps and social media platforms are an “unsettling thing.” OpenAI is going for a much different vibe with their AI device.
According to Altman, the ChatGPT creator is aiming to bring a vibe of “sitting in the most beautiful cabin by a lake and in the mountains and sort of just enjoying the peace and calm” to its AI device.
“I think this actually just isn’t possible in the pre-AI world of technology,” Altman said. “I think this isn’t possible with the current kinds of devices that we have.”
Altman goes on to describe a device that makes users’ lives “peaceful and calm and just letting us focus on other stuff.” Altman envisions a device with “really smart AI that you trust to do things for you over longs periods of time” and that would “be contextually aware of when it should…present information to you or ask for your input or not.”
“You trust it over time,” Altman said. “And it does have just this incredible contextual awareness of your whole life.”
Ive, who was also being interviewed alongside Altman, also went on to share that he believed the product would be out in less than two years.
“I hope when people see it, they say ‘that’s it?’ It’s like so simple,” Altman said. “But then it just does. As we were talking about, AI can do so much.”
OpenAI’s AI device sounds a lot like what the AI devices that came before it hoped to do. It looks like we may soon see if OpenAI is the first to actually pull it off.
Disclosure: Ziff Davis, Mashable’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.
