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The two were separately approached by Saudi Arabia to become members of an advisory board for the country’s $500bn (£412bn) Neom megacity project, although they distanced themselves from the country after the murder of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in late 2018.
It is unclear what an AI device might look like but Mr Altman has already launched one piece of hardware this year influenced by the technology.
His company Worldcoin has built a gadget called the Orb that scans people’s irises. Mr Altman believes the database of irises will help people protect their identities online as AI makes fraud more prevalent.
One of Mr Ive’s proteges at Apple, Thomas Meyerhoffer, is Worldcoin’s lead designer.
Bola Rotibi, head of enterprise research at CCS Insight, said it was “no surprise” that Sir Jony and Mr Altman were in discussions.
She said: “I suspect that [the device] will have a dedicated focus, likely to target specific industries such as healthcare and manufacturing firms.”
Like the iPhone, a new AI gadget could “kick start a highly dynamic market and create a new competitive front,” Ms Rotibi said.
OpenAI did not respond to requests for comment. Sir Jony could not be reached for comment.
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