Former Apple designer Jony Ive's LoveFrom and SoftBank are reportedly in talks to build a device that could revolutionize the use of artificial intelligence in the same way the iPhone revolutionized smartphones.
Following the first reports of the two companies collaborating to build artificial intelligence hardware devices, some new details have emerged. This includes SoftBank, which is in talks to contribute more than $1 billion to the project.
According to the Financial Times, three unnamed sources revealed that Jony Ive has been brainstorming with OpenAI’s Sam Altman at his San Francisco studio. It is said that the central topic of the meeting is what new consumer products using OpenAI technology can do and what they can look like.
Their aim was reportedly to find a product comparable to the way the iPhone's multi-touch innovation ignited mobile internet usage. That's not to say the device has to be a phone, but it has to present a user interface that's as new as the 2007 iPhone, but still understandable at a glance.
Ive was also apparently keen on finding a way to interact with computers that would reduce users' reliance on screens. In addition to providing funding, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son is said to have suggested that the device use a processor produced by SoftBank's ARM unit.
Discussions between Son, Ive and Altman also involved forming a new company to leverage the expertise of their respective companies. Sources reportedly described the discussions as "serious" but no agreement has yet been reached.
Sources also said a formal announcement of the joint venture could take several months. And the development of the device itself can take years.