OpenAI is building a phone. That's the word from supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who says the company has tapped MediaTek and Qualcomm for chips and Luxshare Precision Industry for manufacturing, with mass production targeted for 2028. According to Ming-Chi Kuo's latest analysis, it's a sharp U-turn from OpenAI's previous hardware plans, which had Jony Ive designing non-phone devices like smart speakers, glasses, and even a smart lamp. OpenAI paid $6.5 billion for Ive's startup io Products. Now those ambient computing ideas appear to be taking a back seat to a full smartphone play. Kuo's argument for why a phone makes sense for AI agents is straightforward: your phone knows where you are, what you're doing, who you're talking to, and what's happening around you. That real-time context is exactly what an AI agent needs to be useful. Kuo argues that this real-time context is precisely what an AI agent needs to be useful. He thinks agents will shift phones from app-centric to task-oriented, where you describe what you want done instead of tapping through individual apps. Sam Altman seems to agree, posting that it "feels like a good time to seriously rethink how operating systems and user interfaces are designed." Controlling both hardware and OS would let OpenAI bundle subscriptions and build its own developer ecosystem. But the odds here are rough. The smartphone market has crushed every challenger. Facebook's phone failed. Amazon's Fire phone failed. Microsoft washed out early. One commenter called the project "very Sam Altman," and that about captures it: hugely ambitious, logically coherent on paper, and facing a graveyard of similar attempts. The SoftBank connection helps. Masayoshi Son's company owns Arm Holdings, whose architecture powers those Qualcomm and MediaTek chips. SoftBank also has telecom distribution channels and has already poured $6.5 billion into OpenAI. Son reportedly pitched Altman on a consumer hardware partnership tying together OpenAI's software, Arm's chips, and SoftBank's network. That's a real stack. Whether anyone actually wants an OpenAI phone in their pocket is a separate question entirely.
OpenAI's Phone Gambit: The Ive Reversal, Chip Deals, 2028 Target
OpenAI is reportedly developing a smartphone with mass production scheduled for 2028, according to supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. MediaTek and Qualcomm are chip partners, and Luxshare Precision Industry is the exclusive manufacturer. Kuo argues smartphones are uniquely positioned for AI agent use due to their ability to capture a user's full real-time state including location, activity, and context. It's a reversal from OpenAI's earlier focus on non-phone form factors developed with Jony Ive.
