OpenAI Reportedly Developing Custom Smartphone Chips with MediaTek and Qualcomm

OpenAI is developing a custom smartphone processor in partnership with MediaTek and Qualcomm, with Luxshare serving as exclusive partner for system design and manufacturing, according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. The device, expected to enter mass production in 2028 with specifications finalized by late 2026 or early 2027, would use a hybrid approach combining small on-device AI models with cloud models to continuously understand user context. By creating its own hardware stack, OpenAI aims to bypass restrictions imposed by Apple and Google on app functionality and system access while gaining deeper access to user data than ChatGPT's current app provides. This smartphone initiative comes as ChatGPT approaches one billion weekly users and OpenAI plans to announce its first hardware product—reportedly AI-enabled earbuds—in the second half of 2026.

OpenAI's Smartphone Development Plans with MediaTek and Qualcomm

• ▪Luxshare is acting as a co-design and manufacturing partner for OpenAI's smartphone project
• ▪OpenAI's smartphone would be designed to continuously understand users' context
• ▪OpenAI has hardware plans that involve launching a pair of earbuds
• ▪ChatGPT is nearing a billion weekly users
• ▪OpenAI's smartphone will work on a mixture of small on-device models and cloud models to handle different types of requests and tasks
• ▪OpenAI is developing a smartphone chip with MediaTek and Qualcomm

AI Agents Replacing Traditional Apps

• ▪Nothing CEO Carl Pei said at SXSW that apps will eventually go away
• ▪By offering the phone itself, OpenAI could gain access to more data about users' habits than an app on the phone could
• ▪Apple and Google control the app pipeline and the type of system access apps get, restricting some of their functions
• ▪By creating its own smartphone and hardware stack, OpenAI would be able to use AI in all kinds of features without restrictions
• ▪OpenAI's smartphone could rely on AI agents to complete different tasks instead of apps

Timeline and Manufacturing Details

• ▪Mass production of OpenAI's smartphone is expected to start in 2028
• ▪OpenAI Chief Global Affairs Officer Chris Lehane said that OpenAI is on track to announce its first hardware product in the second half of 2026
• ▪OpenAI's smartphone specifications and component suppliers are expected to be finalized by year-end 2026 or by the first quarter of 2027
• ▪Reports in early 2026 indicated that OpenAI's first hardware device could be uniquely designed earbuds

Perspective of OpenAI

• ▪OpenAI sees creating its own smartphone and hardware stack as a way to use AI in features without the restrictions imposed by Apple and Google

Perspective of Apple and Google

• ▪Apple and Google's control over app pipelines and system access restricts the functions that AI applications like ChatGPT can perform on their platforms

Perspective of AI-first hardware advocates

• ▪OpenAI's smartphone could replace traditional apps with AI agents that complete different tasks directly