OpenAI reportedly exploring smartphone development

Industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reports that OpenAI might be working on a smartphone in collaboration with semiconductor companies MediaTek and Qualcomm, alongside electronics manufacturer Luxshare. According to Kuo, OpenAI would develop a smartphone chip with MediaTek and Qualcomm, while Luxshare would act as a co-design and manufacturing partner. This potential hardware push aligns with comments from OpenAI Chief Global Affairs Officer Chris Lehane, who stated earlier this year that the company is on track to announce its first hardware product in the second half of 2026. While previous reports indicated that this initial device could be uniquely designed earbuds, Kuo’s report suggests a much broader mobile strategy.

The proposed smartphone could rely on AI agents to complete different tasks instead of traditional applications. Currently, platform owners Apple and Google control the app pipeline and restrict the level of system access that external applications receive. Kuo suggests that by creating its own smartphone and hardware stack, OpenAI would be able to use AI in all kinds of features without these platform restrictions. Additionally, OpenAI’s smartphone would be designed to continuously understand users’ context. By offering the physical device itself, the company could gain access to more data about users’ habits than a standard application running on a competitor’s operating system could. This direct hardware channel could support OpenAI’s consumer ambitions as ChatGPT is currently nearing a billion weekly users.

According to Kuo, the smartphone’s specifications and its component suppliers are expected to be finalized by the end of the year or by the first quarter of 2027. Mass production of the device is expected to start in 2028. This shift away from traditional application ecosystems is not unique to OpenAI. App developers utilizing “vibe coding”—a term used to describe a specific approach to app development—are increasingly predicting a future that does not involve apps. Carl Pei, the CEO of consumer electronics company Nothing, similarly stated at the SXSW conference that apps will eventually go away, signaling an industry-wide interest in app-less, AI-first hardware.

Why it matters

OpenAI is reportedly exploring a smartphone to bypass app-store restrictions and leverage AI agents, potentially shifting its hardware strategy beyond previously rumored earbuds. By controlling its own hardware stack, the company aims to deploy AI agents directly to users without the platform limitations imposed by Apple and Google.