OpenAI’s Hardware Plans Have a Bigger Problem than Apple’s Law

OpenAI’s plans to build and sell an AI machine were undoubtedly hit by the road this month when Apple filed a lawsuit against the maker of ChatGPT, claiming former Apple employees stole trade secrets when they left Apple to join OpenAI. But if OpenAI is not careful, it will have much bigger problems to deal with.

Imitation is a sincere way of flattering mediocrity that can pay for greatness, as the saying goes. But when does copying, a time-honored tradition among tech companies, cross the line? According to Apple’s new lawsuit, that’s happening now. Specifically naming 24-year-old former Apple hardware executive Tang Tan and software engineer Chang Liu in the lawsuit, Apple says OpenAI “misappropriated Apple’s proprietary and confidential information.”

The case alleges the incompetence of these employers. But beyond this alleged breach of contract, the underlying concern is that OpenAI will use Apple’s secret sauce — manufacturer contacts, specs, techniques — when creating its own piece of AI hardware. One, in Apple’s worst case scenario, could end up competing with the iPhone.

Apple’s case is another problem on their mountain. In addition to proving that it didn’t steal from Apple, OpenAI already had a difficult task: Prove that any gadget it makes is safe, useful and worth our hard-earned money. As we’ve seen so far with other AI devices, public reaction ranges from indifference to outrage. And OpenAI has played a major role in the possibility of creating a tangible product.

OpenAI hardware requirements

OpenAI took seriously the idea of ​​an AI device in 2025, accelerating its plans and public image with the acquisition of io Products, led by the famous Apple designer Jony Ive. For details like designing the iPhone, MacBook and Apple Watch, Ive’s relationship with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman sets the tone for what to expect.

There’s a good reason OpenAI seems to be hiring former Apple employees to bolster its hardware research and development. From the founding of the Cupertino company, founder Steve Jobs persevered and creatively combined form and function, creating an iconic style that prioritized user experience and simplicity. Apple’s design style has helped the company revolutionize every category of technology, from the iPhone that paved the way for smartphones to the first iPad as the first mainstream tablet.

Reports from the start of Ive’s partnership with OpenAI describe their ideal device as a kind of “third” gadget that can sit next to your phone and computer. The latest report on how that might shape a kind of portable, screenless smart speaker with a “human-like” personality. The screen-free aspect seems to be important to Altman and Ive, from many reports, Ive is reportedly wary of wearables like pins, watches and smart rings.

There may be other devices in the family, including a device rumored in January that wears behind your ear so you can talk to ChatGPT. There may be at least one screen in the new family of products, with a May report describing an “AI agent phone,” driven by autonomous bots that rely heavily on advanced AI functions.

Products like this are one form of virtual AI, devices that help us visually interact with AI. Many tech experts see progress in the software sector of AI as big enough to power new forms of hardware, such as robots, wearables and other designs.

But right now, it’s hard to know how any OpenAI device will be meaningfully different from, say, an Amazon Echo or Google Home. OpenAI certainly doesn’t have the shopping network and connected home ecosystem that Amazon and Google both have. So if OpenAI is only building devices for work tasks — like the $230 limited-edition Codex keypad — are there enough serious AI users willing to fork out for these devices?

For companies like OpenAI, which builds both software and hardware, the opportunity to sell the tools — which are popular and well-priced, rightly so — can bring in much-needed cash as they continue to pour billions of dollars into development. Way more than $20 a month for ChatGPT subscriptions and complex government contracts. And as the company continues to tease the first public offering of the future, having more to offer than ChatGPT and Codex is a plus.

The success of any AI device with OpenAI will fall almost entirely on the company’s standing, especially in terms of its usefulness, security and, frankly, that mysterious cool factor. You only have to look at the debates and failures of other AI devices to see how bad it can be — and ask if we need another AI device at all.

Our strong relationship with AI devices

The most popular type of AI hardware right now is the Meta smart glasses. Meta is not alone, but is the industry leader in creating glasses that use VR/AR and AI technology. But they have already highlighted many issues of privacy and independence.

Meta drew the ire of many people this summer when it was reported that it was trying to add facial recognition technology to its glasses. Then came a lawsuit alleging that Kenyan Meta contractors could see everything you see through the glasses, including sensitive information and settings.

Meta’s response to these incidents has not made it easy for people to understand when they are recorded. The many eye responses to Kylie Jenner’s campaign for her exclusive Meta sunglasses show reflect that. And it’s not like Facebook’s parent company has a strong history of protecting its users’ privacy.

Another AI device that has sparked a backlash is the hanging Friend AI. This ever-listening friend has raised the same privacy concerns as Meta’s smart glasses. A friend spent $1 million to cover New York City in ads, which people quickly wrote. They wrote sentiments like “Surveillance capitalism” and “Find real friends.”

There are other startups exploring AI hardware, such as the Plaud AI pin and the Vocci AI smart ring. But they’re a niche category of technology, not the mainstream that smartphones and laptops were two decades ago. Maybe it will in the future, but these first waves of backlash show that many of us in the general public are not yet ready to fully integrate it into our lives.

At the very least, it’s a PR disaster that kills any need for consumer AI devices, if that need ever existed. But if any company has the power to bring this new product category to mainstream awareness, it will be the same company that has already done it with ChatGPT.

Any AI device that OpenAI comes out with will be judged by its predecessors. And with AI’s already dangerous reputation for privacy — you really shouldn’t trust AI with your private and sensitive information — policy and implementing safeguards will be critical.