OpenAI’s secretive push into consumer hardware is now under public scrutiny, thanks to court filings in a trademark dispute involving Jony Ive’s new venture, io, and Google-backed startup iyO. Though much of the project remains under wraps, the documents reveal a clearer picture of how OpenAI and Ive’s team are reimagining the AI device and why it may not be what many expected.
The legal battle was sparked by a lawsuit filed by iyO earlier this month, alleging trademark infringement. The startup, known for developing custom-moulded in-ear earpieces, claims OpenAI and io are using branding that’s confusingly similar. In response to a court order, OpenAI pulled promotional materials related to its $6.5 billion acquisition of io while continuing to deny wrongdoing.
Early Exploration: Headphones, Ear Scans, and Product Demos
Filings submitted on June 12 shed light on the early stages of OpenAI and io’s hardware R&D. According to the documents, teams from both companies spent the last year investigating in-ear tech, purchasing at least 30 sets of headphones and holding multiple meetings with iyO executives, including one on May 1 at io’s Jackson Square office in San Francisco.
There, OpenAI’s VP of Product, Peter Welinder, and io’s chief hardware officer, Tang Tan, tested iyO’s earpiece. According to court documents, they were unimpressed, with the product reportedly malfunctioning during demonstrations.
The meeting was arranged, Tan said, as a professional courtesy at the suggestion of his mentor, former Apple executive Steve Zadesky. He added that he “took precautions” not to access proprietary information, including asking for legal review of any sensitive material before viewing it himself.
Not an Earbud and Not Anytime Soon
Despite deep research into audio-based devices, io’s first hardware product may not be an earpiece at all. In a sworn declaration, Tan clarified that the prototype referenced in io’s launch video “is not an in-ear device, nor a wearable device.” The product’s design, he noted, has not been finalised and is still “at least a year away” from being promoted or made available to the public.
“Our intent with this collaboration was, and is, to create products that go beyond traditional products and interfaces,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in a separate court filing.
OpenAI’s lawyers echoed this, stating the company has looked into “a wide range of devices,” including options that are desktop-based, mobile, wireless, wired, wearable, and portable.
Altman previously described the envisioned device as a kind of “third device,” not a phone, not a laptop, but something new. It would be compact enough to “fit in a pocket or sit on a desk” and be deeply aware of the user’s environment, according to past comments reported by The Wall Street Journal.
Missed Connections and Rejected Offers
Though iyO tried multiple times to deepen ties with OpenAI and io, those efforts largely failed. Founder Jason Rugolo pitched the idea of launching iyO’s earpiece as a “developer kit” for OpenAI’s eventual product. He even offered to sell iyO to OpenAI for $200 million, according to emails included in the filings. Tan declined the offers.
Still, OpenAI and io showed interest in iyO’s partners. One idea floated by IO engineer Marwan Rammah suggested purchasing a 3D ear scan database from The Ear Project, a partner of iyO that creates custom-fit ear maps. The data, he said, would provide a “helpful starting point on ergonomics.” It’s unclear whether that deal moved forward.
Open Questions as Launch Timeline Stretches Ahead
Evans Hankey, a former Apple design executive who now serves as io’s chief product officer, confirmed in court that the team is “not working on a custom-moulded earpiece product.” That’s a clear attempt to distance IO from any overlap with IYO’s intellectual property.
The filings suggest that the collaboration between OpenAI and io is still in an exploratory phase, with no finished product and no imminent launch. Still, the legal conflict has peeled back the curtain just enough to reveal a vision of a next-generation AI device, one that might redefine how humans interact with machines.
For now, though, the only clear certainty is this: whatever OpenAI and Jony Ive are building, it isn’t just another earbud.
