OpenAI is supposed to be working on its own hardware. One of these, designed by Jony Ive, may or may not be a pen. Likely to launch first, the other is supposed to be a smart speaker. Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman has still more detail about the device’s specifics. It sounds… tasty.
Literally, in this case. The unnamed speaker is supposed to be doughnut-shaped — a circular speaker with a hole in the middle. Less tasty? The projected price for one of these things. And the fact that previous ‘movable’ rumours were entirely overblown.
Doughnot do that, OpenAI
According to Gurman’s report, the ChatGPT speaker will bear some resemblance to the early-generation Amazon Echo speakers. That is, it’ll be a small circular puck shape. Unlike the Echo, the 7.6cm speaker will have a hole in the middle. The reason given for the hole is that it’ll make it easier to carry OpenAI’s hardware around the house with you. Odds are far more likely that it’ll infringe fewer design prototypes if the company sticks a hole in the centre.
The speaker is supposed to work with ChatGPT’s voice mode, so you’ll need a hefty subscription to the company’s AI to get any serious use out of it. You’ll also need a hefty wallet, since the speaker itself is said to cost between $300 and $400. That’s anywhere between R5,000 and R6,500 before you start talking to ChatGPT at all.
The still-rumoured device won’t feature a display. Gurman reports, however, that it’ll “include parts that move on their own.” These will somehow indicate “when it’s responding and interacting with the user.” We’re picturing a very small pair of hands, for some reason, but there’s no sign of what these parts will actually look like.
A launch for the pricey little battery-powered doughnut is set for 2027, but we’ll probably see an actual unveiling some time before then. Once actual hardware shows up, we’ll be better positioned to decide whether OpenAI is taking a chance or is on to something decent.
