OpenAI Develops Portable AI Smart Speaker as Personal Home Companion

OpenAI is reportedly developing its first hardware product, a portable, screenless AI smart speaker designed to act as a personal companion within the home. According to Bloomberg, the device will perform functions such as controlling smart home gadgets, playing music, answering questions, sending instant messages, and integrating ChatGPT capabilities. This move places OpenAI in direct competition with established smart speaker makers like Apple, Amazon, and Google.

The news emerges shortly after Apple filed a lawsuit against OpenAI alleging industrial espionage and theft of trade secrets by OpenAI's hardware division. Initial reports about OpenAI's hardware ambitions surfaced in May 2025, following its acquisition of the startup io, founded by former Apple designer Jony Ive. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has described the device as fully aware of the user's environment and life, non-intrusive, and portable enough to fit in a pocket or sit on a desk. He envisions it as a third essential device for consumers alongside the MacBook Pro and iPhone.

OpenAI aims to innovate within the mature smart speaker market by making the device increasingly personalized and proactive, anticipating user needs and providing information autonomously. The company emphasizes the speaker's personality and human-like connection with users, intending it to feel like a companion and a physical embodiment of ChatGPT. The speaker will include mechanical components enabling movement to enhance the sense of a responsive, living device. It will have a rechargeable battery for easy portability between rooms or locations such as the office. OpenAI has not commented on the report.