OpenAI’s Jony Ive speaker may cost up to $400

OpenAI’s first major hardware project with Jony Ive is reportedly a battery-powered, doughnut-shaped smart speaker about the size of a hockey puck. The display-free device could cost more than $300, according to Bloomberg reporting cited by The Verge, with MacRumors putting the expected price at roughly $300 to $400.

How OpenAI’s speaker would work

The product is designed for voice conversations with ChatGPT. Speaker grilles and microphones would support interaction, while a camera system and other sensors would collect information about the user’s surroundings. MacRumors reports that the AI would provide more human-like responses and learn more about the user over time.

The device would use lights to indicate when it is listening and moving components to signal when it is responding. The Verge describes those parts as capable of moving on their own, giving the speaker a physical way to express activity. Its battery and one-handed design are intended to let users carry it between rooms, similar to Amazon’s discontinued Tap speaker.

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The reported design is a sharp departure from conventional smart speakers: a premium metal body, no screen, a portable form factor and mechanisms intended to give the product “personality.” OpenAI’s former Apple design chief Jony Ive is reportedly leading the design after OpenAI acquired Ive’s io device startup last year and added several former Apple design team members to its hardware group.

“building something entirely new and different from anything at Apple.”

Apple lawsuit adds a complication

The hardware arrives while Apple’s trade-secrets lawsuit against OpenAI remains active. Apple has alleged that OpenAI misled an Apple supplier while developing a metal-finishing technique similar to one used by Apple. OpenAI argues that the reported speaker is unlike anything Apple has come close to launching, a point MacRumors says supports its defense against Apple’s claims.

The comparison is limited but revealing. Apple’s expected home hub has a square design and a display, while the HomePod mini is corded and not designed to move easily around a home. Apple is also reportedly developing a tabletop robot with a display and motorized arm, but that product is not expected before 2027.

The two reports differ on timing and price. The Verge says the speaker is expected to launch in 2027 and cost more than $300; MacRumors reports a $300–$400 price range and says OpenAI hopes to introduce it later this year ahead of a 2027 launch. OpenAI has not confirmed either figure or provided a firm release date.

That uncertainty is the central weakness of the report: the product’s final price, launch schedule and capabilities remain unconfirmed. Still, the reported specifications suggest a substantial move beyond a ChatGPT app or OpenAI’s first coding keypad, toward a portable, sensor-equipped computer designed around voice interaction. If the $300–$400 estimate holds, OpenAI will need those physical signals, portability and more capable voice models to justify buying another speaker instead of using ChatGPT on a phone.