Jony Ive & Team Join OpenAI; Introduce "io"

Sam Altman and Jon Ive (no, I don't know them personally) announced a partnership today with a press release and near 9-minute video. This might be the first press release that evoked my emotions. (Felt more like an engagement announcement than a press release.) They didn't offer many details and set expectations of "more next year." The core premise is that compute hardware should be different because computing is fundamentally different when computers can see, think, and understand (yes, still primitive today in many ways.)

My take:

1. I am excited about what they might build. So much of what we have seen so far with genAI has been focused on enhancing what we already do (e.g., write, create images, code, do analysis). We haven't seen fundamentally "new" yet - (e.g., displacing the digital camera, maps, or Uber).

2. The time is soon for consumer products. Today, as humans we adapt to what genAI can do well (e.g., summarize, analyze, categorize, write, answer questions, create images, and more). Too few companies are focused on matching what consumers want or need with what genAI can do. (I previously authored a piece on genAI giving consumers personalization, superpowers, access, convenience, comfort, and education/entertainment).

3. Computers' abilities to see, think, understand, and act are a bit overstated today, and they likely won't be by the time a product is in market.

4. Open questions for me: what will the new "io" products and services replace? what will be net new? Will consumers buy a new device? (There hasn't been an "it" device really since the smartphone. Meta really wants it be glasses/headset, but headwinds will persist there near term). Will we see a shift from Apple and Google? (Remember Nokia, Motorola, Nikon, Canons, and local taxis in the local markets?) How and what kinds of my personal data, style, preferences, accounts, identities, credentials, and more will these services need to be effective?