The New York Times was the first to report that OpenAI is purchasing Jony Ive’s startup, io, for $6.5 billion.
The company’s blog post on its website, which was headlined by the photo you see above, validated the news. The photo is reportedly genuine and not generated by AI. Ive and his design studio, LoveFrom, will continue to operate independently of OpenAI as part of the agreement. Nevertheless, around 50 additional engineers, designers, and researchers will join OpenAI as employees, including Scott Cannon, Evans Hankey, and Tang Tan, who co-founded io with Ive. They will collaborate with OpenAI’s current teams to develop hardware that enables individuals to interact with OpenAI’s technologies.
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OpenAI has not specified whether the transaction will be settled in cash or stock. According to the Wall Street Journal, it is an all-equity transaction. Open AI has yet to generate revenue. Additionally, The Information reports that OpenAI has consented to share 20% of its revenue with Microsoft until 2030 in exchange for the over $13 billion that the tech titan has invested in the company. Altman informed The Times that the press is more concerned with OpenAI’s funding and revenue than the company itself when queried about how it would finance the acquisition. “We will be fine,” he assured. “I appreciate your apprehension.” Regulatory approval remains contingent upon the agreement.
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In an interview with The Times, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Ive, who is most renowned for his design work on the iPhone, stated that the objective of the partnership is to develop “amazing products that elevate humanity.” Altman was an investor in Humane, the startup that was responsible for the Humane AI Pin, which was unsuccessful, prior to today. The company was acquired by HP for $116 million earlier this year, a significant decrease from the $1 billion that Humane had reportedly sought prior to the sale.
“The io team, which is dedicated to the creation of products that inspire, empower, and enable, will now merge with OpenAI in order to collaborate more closely with the research, engineering, and product teams in San Francisco,” OpenAI announces on its website. Jony and LoveFrom will undertake deep design and creative responsibilities across OpenAI and io as io merges with OpenAI.
The Times reports that OpenAI had acquired a 23 percent stake in io as a result of an agreement between the two companies at the conclusion of 2024. OpenAI is currently paying an estimated $5 billion to acquire complete control of the startup. It is uncertain whether this indicates the presence of physical OpenAI devices on the horizon, and if so, what form they will take. The YouTube video you are currently viewing is accompanied by the following description: “Developing a family of AI products that are accessible to all.” The market may not see the fruits of the acquisition for years, and some of the work done by Ive and his team may never be realized.
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