Sources: OpenAI's new device, slated for 2027, is a hockey puck-sized smart speaker with moving parts that help give it personality and will likely cost $300+

A highly anticipated new device from OpenAI will have a unique look, complete with moving parts that help give it personality …

Bloomberg 2026-08-07 Mark Gurman

Context & Ripple Effects

OpenAI’s reported hardware effort has sharpened from audio-model work for a personal device into a screen-free companion concept with a camera and sensors. Earlier reporting also described a 200-plus-person AI-device team exploring a speaker alongside other form factors.

The latest account adds a more defined product shape, a 2027 target and a price above $300. That matters because OpenAI is reportedly designing a dedicated physical entry point to ChatGPT rather than relying solely on software distribution through existing devices.

First-order effects

OpenAI’s hardware program is now associated with a specific consumer product target: a compact, moving smart speaker priced above $300 and planned for 2027.
The reported screen-free, sensor-equipped companion design makes voice, sensing and physical expressiveness the primary interface for accessing ChatGPT on the device.

Second-order effects

A price above $300 raises the importance of the device’s companion-like personality and dedicated interaction model; it cannot be positioned simply as another voice speaker with ChatGPT access.
OpenAI’s audio-model work becomes more commercially consequential because the reported device depends on audio as its core mode of use rather than on a display-driven interface.

Third-order effects

If OpenAI ships the device as described, ChatGPT would gain a proprietary ambient endpoint, giving the company a route to control more of the interface between its assistant and users.
The effort is part of a broader shift toward AI products differentiated by persistent, embodied interaction rather than by a standalone app or chatbot window.

The trend: AI labs are moving from model access through third-party devices toward dedicated ambient hardware that makes the assistant a continuous presence.

Discussion

@markgurman Mark Gurman on x
NEW: OpenAI's device - a human-like smart speaker - will look like a doughnut and be the size of a hockey puck. It meant to be held. It has a camera, speakers, microphones, lights and, most notably, moving parts to show interactivity. It'll be $300-400. https://www.bloomberg.com/…
@markgurman Mark Gurman on x
The big takeaway here is that it looks, feels and acts nothing like an Apple product or anything the company is currently planning. OpenAI hasn't found any evidence they're violating trade secrets with this device, I'm told.
@pitdesi Sheel Mohnot on x
OpenAI's hardware product is a donut-shaped smart speaker the size of a hockey puck, with a camera, speakers, microphones, and lights. $300-400 Certainly seems like that product @jgebbia was spotted with in SF could be a prototype [image]
@nmasc_ Natasha Mascarenhas on x
Big scoop from @markgurman w/ all the nitty gritty details on OpenAI's new device https://www.bloomberg.com/...
@gerstenzang Sam Gerstenzang on x
I bet Apple is going to release a really thin version of this but it will be a rectangle with a screen.
@snell.zone Jason Snell on bluesky
It shall now be known as Hockey Puck Donut [embedded post]
r/accelerate r on reddit
OpenAI's New Device Will Be Hockey Puck-Sized and Cost Over $300
r/BetterOffline r on reddit
OpenAI's New Device Will Be Hockey Puck-Sized and Cost Over $300
r/technology r on reddit
OpenAI's New Device Will Be Hockey Puck-Sized and Cost Over $300
r/singularity r on reddit
OpenAI's New Device Will Be Hockey Puck-Sized and Cost Over $300
r/ChatGPT r on reddit
NEW: OpenAI's device - a human-like smart speaker - will look like a doughnut and be the size of a hockey puck. It meant to be held. …
r/OpenAI r on reddit
OpenAI's New Device Will Be Hockey Puck-Sized and Cost Over $300

Chronicles