OpenAI targets Apple talent, suppliers as it gears up for hardware launch

OpenAI seems to be quietly building a consumer hardware lineup, luring top Apple talent and signing deals with major suppliers.

OpenAI is reportedly working with Luxshare and Goertek, both Apple suppliers, to build its first consumer devices. (Express Image)

Talent acquisition is heating up in Silicon Valley. Reportedly, OpenAI is aggressively pursuing dozens of professionals from Apple and is inducing them by offering lucrative stock packages to the tune of $1 million. These talent raids are reportedly carried out to rope in Apple’s design and manufacturing veterans. All of this is happening when reports of OpenAI preparing to launch its first consumer hardware devices are making the rounds.

According to reports, the hiring spree is led by OpenAI’s chief hardware officer, Tang Tan, who worked with Apple for over two decades, reporting directly to Apple’s hardware chief, John Ternus. Some reports also suggest that Tan has been assuring prospective hires ‘less bureaucracy and more collaboration’. This is in stark contrast to Apple’s largely restrictive and straitjacket corporate environment.

To materialise its hardware plans, OpenAI has already signed manufacturing deals with some key Apple suppliers. Earlier this week, it was reported that Luxshare, a Chinese components manufacturer known for assembling iPhones and AirPods, entered a contract with OpenAI to make at least one of its devices. Besides, the Sam Altman-led company has also reached out to Goertek, another major Apple supplier that makes HomePods, AirPods, Apple Watches, etc., to gather components including speaker modules.

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Reportedly, the devices being developed by the AI powerhouse include a smart speaker without a display, smart glasses, a digital voice recorder, a wearable pin, etc. The company is eyeing launching its maiden devices sometime between 2026 and early 2027.

Even as OpenAI moves forward with its talent raid, it seems Apple too is ensuring to contain defections. Reportedly, the iPhone maker cancelled an annual offsite meeting in China for its supply chain and manufacturing teams. It is speculated that the company did so to avoid keeping its executives away from Cupertino, considering OpenAI’s measures to obtain more of its talents. Apple has seen numerous departures, with over two dozen of its hardware veterans joining Altman’s company in just one year.

Some of the prominent names that switched to OpenAI include Cyrus Daniel Irani, known for designing Siri’s multicoloured waveform; Matt Theobald, who worked on manufacturing design for Apple for about two decades; and Erik de Jong, who served as a senior executive in the Apple Watch Hardware team. The recent exits raise questions about Apple’s dynamics with OpenAI as the companies continue to remain partners, with the former licensing OpenAI models for Siri and its Image Playground app.

If OpenAI unveils its line of devices, it could be its boldest move to develop a dedicated consumer device, a segment that has been largely dominated by Apple, Samsung and Google.

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artificial intelligence

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