OpenAI Abandons ‘io’ Branding for Its AI Hardware

OpenAI will not use the name “io” for its forthcoming line of AI hardware devices, according to a Monday court filing.

The motion is part of a trademark infringement lawsuit filed last year by audio device startup iyO, which sued OpenAI after it acquired famed Apple designer Jony Ive’s startup io. Peter Welinder, OpenAI’s vice president and general manager, said in the filing that OpenAI had reviewed its product-naming strategy and “decided not to use the name ‘io’ (or ‘IYO,’ or any capitalization of either) in connection with the naming, advertising, marketing, or sale of any artificial intelligence-enabled hardware products.”

Welinder also said that OpenAI now has a better understanding of the timeline for getting its devices to market. In the filing, the company said its first hardware device won’t ship to customers before the end of February 2027.

Previously, OpenAI has said that it is planning to unveil its AI device in the second half of 2026. The company’s first prototype is reportedly a screenless device that can sit on a user’s desk, and accompany a phone and laptop. Welinder also said that OpenAI has yet to create packaging or marketing materials for its first hardware device, according to the filing.

OpenAI did not immediately respond to WIRED’s request for comment.

The news comes as wild rumors continue to spread about OpenAI’s hardware efforts. A now debunked Reddit thread went viral over the weekend, claiming that OpenAI had pulled a Super Bowl ad unveiling its forthcoming device. Someone posted the alleged ad, which featured the actor Alexander Skarsgård wearing a pair of silver headphones and tapping a reflective puck. The video was shared widely on social media, including by Reddit cofounder Alexis Ohanian.

OpenAI spokesperson Lindsay McCallum confirmed to WIRED that the ChatGPT-maker had nothing to do with the ad in question.

OpenAI announced back in May 2025 that it would acquire Jony Ive’s secretive consumer hardware subsidiary for $6.5 billion, marking the company’s largest acquisition ever. At the time, io was marketed as a new company that would merge with OpenAI to create a family of AI devices.

Since then, the company has been embroiled in a messy trademark infringement lawsuit that’s likely revealed more than OpenAI would have liked about its devices. iyO claims that OpenAI and io executives met with iyO leaders and tested the company’s AI audio technology before the acquisition was announced.

OpenAI leaders previously revealed in filings related to this lawsuit that the prototype CEO Sam Altman mentioned in io’s launch video was “not an in-ear device, nor a wearable device.”