OpenAI Launches First Hardware Device: AI-Powered Smart Speaker

OpenAI has officially entered the consumer hardware market with its first device — reportedly a smart speaker powered by the company’s proprietary AI technology. According to VnExpress on July 16, this marks a strategic pivot for OpenAI from a pure software company to an integrated hardware-software ecosystem.

The First Product

The device is described as a smart speaker with natural voice interaction capabilities, directly integrating GPT-5.6 — enabling contextual conversations, complex question-answering, and tasks far beyond current virtual assistants. Unlike Siri or Alexa, which rely on limited models, OpenAI’s device promises superior reasoning and creative capabilities.

This is part of the heating “AI-first hardware” trend, as AI companies realize that controlling the full user experience requires both hardware and software.

Legal Trouble from Apple

However, OpenAI’s hardware ambitions face a major obstacle. Apple has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging breach of prior cooperation agreements related to ChatGPT integration into Apple’s ecosystem. TechCrunch asked: “Can an Apple lawsuit derail OpenAI’s hardware plans?”

According to sources, Apple fears OpenAI’s device will directly compete with HomePod and Siri AI — which Apple just heavily invested in with the newly released iOS 27 public beta.

The AI Battle for the Living Room

Whatever the legal outcome, one thing is clear: the AI war is moving from the cloud into users’ living rooms. Consumers will soon have more choices — but also face a fundamental question: which AI assistant do they want listening to them every day?