Openai acquired the startup of Johnny Ive, IO, for $ 6.5 billion

Openai continues its lightning -fast expansion new acquisition – AI startup of the first iPhone designer Johnny Ive, named IO. The deal is worth $ 6.5 billion – much more than the amount originally mentioned in the amount of $ 500 million and will include the development of the first hardware device of the leader in the field of artificial intelligence.

According to Bloomberg sourcesthe entire value of the transaction will be paid in shares and without the need for monetary transactions, and its finalization should happen in the next few months if of course the approval of the regulators is obtained.

This will add 55 new developers to the growing set of OPENAI employees and mark a new page in the development of the company – hardware development. According to Openai CEO Sam Altman, this move can add a new $ 1 trillion to the market capitalization of the AI ​​giant.

The first joint work device of the two companies will not be either glasses in which Johnny Ive has no particular faith or a phone, but it will be compact enough to fit in our pockets. It will have the ability to be fully aware of its surroundings and our normal daily routine without being intrusive or obstructing us.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w09bipc_3ms

The widget itself is not expected before the end of 2026, but Altman describes it as the potential “third main device” in the everyday life and life of every average consumer after the MacBook Pro and iPhone.

The OpenAi chief also mentions that although they will not be able to be ready with 100 million available devices from the first day, he believes that they will be the first in the world to manage to reach this impressive threshold so quickly. It concludes that the still nameless device is “the coolest technological gadget that the world will ever see.”

And whether this will really be the case or will be another well -gripped PR promise, we have to find out in the coming months and years. However, seeing Johnny Ive at the helm of a large hardware product is more than exciting and we certainly can’t wait to learn more.