Back in 2022, we predicted that the smartphone would not survive beyond 2030 as the dominant digital interface. Today, that timeline appears to be accelerating.
Last week, OpenAI announced its acquisition of io, the AI hardware startup co-founded by former Apple design legend Jony Ive, in a deal valued at $6.5 billion. The acquisition may go down as one of the most significant signals yet that the next leap in personal technology is already underway.
 
Why This Matters
At its core, this deal brings together two of the most influential forces in tech:
Jony Ive, the mind behind the iPhone, iMac, iPod, and countless other Apple products that redefined hardware design
Sam Altman, the driving force behind OpenAI and the global mainstreaming of generative AI 
Their shared vision: a new generation of AI-native devices that do not rely on traditional screens, keyboards, or even apps. These devices are expected to integrate artificial intelligence as the default interface—voice-first, context-aware, and always-on.
 
The iPhone Era Is Ending — Faster Than Expected
When the iPhone launched in 2007, it reshaped how we communicate, consume, and create. For nearly two decades, the smartphone has remained the centerpiece of personal tech. But with the rise of ambient AI, wearable interfaces, and spatial computing, we’re moving toward post-screen, post-app experiences.
 
Ive and Altman are not building a better phone. They’re building an alternative to the phone. This concept aligns closely with what we discussed in 2022: that the phone as a rectangular slab of glass is not the endgame of personal computing. It was always a transitional phase.
 
What Might This New AI Device Look Like?
 
While details are still under wraps, early reporting suggests that the new product will be:

• Screenless or minimal-screen, relying more on voice and gesture
• Embedded with AI agents, capable of real-time summarization, assistance, and task execution
• Designed to fade into daily life, rather than dominate attention like smartphones 
• If successful, this device could make scrolling, tapping, and screen-switching feel like legacy behaviors—much like rotary dialing or T9 texting feels today.

 
What This Means for the Tech Landscape
 
This is more than a hardware announcement. It’s a cultural and behavioral shift. For the first time, a serious team with real design pedigree and AI infrastructure is challenging the smartphone’s supremacy—not by competing with it, but by making it obsolete.
 
In short: the race to replace the smartphone has officially begun.
 
Virtue MENA will continue tracking the evolution of AI-native devices and emerging tech interfaces. Follow us as we explore what’s next in the age beyond the screen.
www.virtuemena.com 
 

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