Here's when OpenAI's mysterious ChatGPT device could be unveiled

It’s no secret that OpenAI is building an AI device that will somehow integrate ChatGPT to help you with responses in the physical world. It has been on the cards since 2024, when OpenAI joined hands with Apple’s former design lead Jony Ive, and then followed by acquiring Ive’s startup in 2025. While the exact nature of the device remains unknown, various hypotheses have emerged. For instance, a leaker last year suggested it could be an audio device shaped like a pen, while a more recent leak indicated it would be a pair of earphones with a previously unseen design.

Although the details remain hazy, OpenAI’s chief global affairs officer Chris Lehane offered some visibility on the timeline. Speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum at the Axios House forum in Davos, Switzerland, Lehane said OpenAI’s device is “on track” to be unveiled in the second half of 2026.

While Lehane indicates the first device would arrive later in 2026, they have also hinted that there would be multiple devices. Axios (paywalled) quoted an OpenAI executive saying that “devices” — plural — would be among the company’s biggest offerings in 2026. They remarked that they would be able to share more information “much later in the year.”

The devices are on track to be unveiled by OpenAI later this year, but the company is still mulling the sale timeline. It will figure that out based on “how things advance,” Lehane further noted.

Per the latest rumors, OpenAI is primarily working on an audio device, codenamed “Sweatpea,” to debase the AirPods’ dominance. The carrying case is said to be shaped like an “egg stone” and will carry two pill-shaped earpieces that will sit behind, and not inside, your ears. The device is likely to be powered by Samsung’s 2nm Exynos but will be manufactured by Foxconn, which also makes iPhones and Pixel devices.