Day: November 26, 2025

• OpenAI is working on a mysterious AI hardware device with famed iPhone designer Jony Ive.
• We don’t know what this device will be, but there are some other AI devices out there that could give us a clue.
• I’m having a hard time getting excited about buying this.

Trust me when I say that I am absolutely thrilled by the chance to blow some money on a new gadget. I really am. I love a gizmo, a device, a widget, or a doohickey. When I see some new electronic thingamabob that might make my life easier or more enjoyable, I want it.

And yet, I am really scratching my head about why I would want or need the new device that OpenAI is working on — whatever it is.

We don’t know much about this mysterious piece of hardware — not exactly what it will do, what it will look like, or what new things it’s capable of. Legendary former Apple designer Jony Ive is working on it, which is, of course, intriguing. Earlier this year, my colleague Alistair Barr rounded up a bunch of predictions about what the device might look like or do, and the ideas ranged from an iPod Shuffle-sized device to some sort of “companion” wearable.

In a recent interview with Laurene Powell Jobs, Sam Altman and Ive talked about the new device, giving away very little detail other than that they expect it to be ready in two years and they want it to pass a “lick” test (ew, but I get it).

But we still don’t really know what it will be. No one knows what might be more useful than your smartphone, which is kind of the most useful thing you can have!

The most boring scenario, which I fear sounds fairly likely, is that it’s some sort of audio device that uses ChatGPT, like a small speaker you can talk to as an assistant that listens and learns. (OpenAI did not respond to my request for comment or for more information on the device.)

We’ve seen some examples of devices like this. The AI Pin was a small clip-on wearable that could see and hear the world around you to give you AI-powered information. (An interesting example was holding up a fruit to it in the grocery store and asking it how much sugar it contained.) The AI Pin crashed and burned, plagued by bad reviews and buggy service. It was, perhaps, just ahead of its time.

I never tested it, but I had a mixed reaction when it launched: I have enormous hesistations about the idea that voice control is the way of the future — I just would be far too embarassed to talk out loud to a device in the grocery store, and I also know my coworkers would ring my neck if I were using it in our open office. And yet … I still kind of wanted it. It looked cool!

More recently, the Friend necklace, another wearable that listened to your conversations and would chat to you as a “friend” (???) had an ignoble launch. The startup bought a massive ad campaign in the New York City subway, and its posters were immediately vandalized by those who found the concept of an AI friend dystopian (whether the backlash was encouraged as part of some 4D chess master marketing plan, that’s something I simply don’t care to put too many brain cells into considering). The Friend necklace also suffered from bad reviews about its buggy service and unappealing concept.

There are also more low-key and less ambitious AI audio devices that perform straightforward tasks. The Plaud Note is a slim device that listens to your meeting or school lecture and takes notes. This is the kind of task AI is great for — making bullet-point summaries of a larger piece of text or audio. You can imagine how great this is for college students, or for people who have a lot of meetings and sales calls.

And yet, this really still doesn’t have a ton of appeal to me. As a journalist, recording and transcribing conversations is an important part of the job, and something that AI tools have helped immensely with (transcriptions especially). But that’s a small part of my day, and like people in many other professions, I also have conversations that I absolutely do not want recorded in any sense.

In my personal life, I’m just not sure I want this kind of speaker device. I already have an Alexa — which I do use! And enjoy! And yes, I wish “she” were smarter and better at doing tasks — but I can’t imagine expanding my use of a smart audio device that far past asking for reminders, the weather, or how many milliliters are in a cup. And though I look at my phone constantly, I can’t imagine vocally chatting with a device — that’s just a huge lifestyle change I can’t wrap my head around.

Maybe this device will do something far more exciting and amazing than just being a souped-up Siri that takes notes. Two years from now is a long time — perhaps some amazing new thing will happen that will totally blow our minds. Or maybe it’s just going to be a really nice version of a souped-up Siri. Which, I’m sad to say, just doesn’t really thrill me.

There’s too much unknown right now about this to pass any kind of judgment. But I’m pretty skeptical that this is going to be something that delights me. As a gadget lover, I am really hoping to have my mind changed.

Investors have been breaking out their checkbooks this year for healthcare startups, especially when AI is involved.

Digital health startups raised $9.9 billion in the first three quarters of the year, surpassing the sector’s fundraising pace from the same period last year, according to Rock Health.

And while AI scribe startups dominated the headlines last year, this year’s players are raising venture capital to apply AI to a broader range of healthcare tasks, from remote monitoring to medical coding and billing.

Business Insider has published exclusive pitch decks for 9 healthcare startups grabbing funding so far this year.

Here are those startups, in alphabetical order:

Here’s the exclusive pitch deck Ambience Healthcare used to raise $243 million as the AI scribing gold rush hits new highs

Ambience, which automates medical transcription, coding, and payment processing, raised its Series C from Andreessen Horowitz and Oak HC/FT.

Here’s an exclusive look at the pitch deck that got an ex-Amazon exec $10 million to bring AI agents to health systems

Ascertain raised its $10 million Series A in April, led by private equity firm Deerfield Management.

Check out the exclusive pitch deck an ex-Uber leader used to raise $10 million to build AI for home healthcare tech

Axle Health raised a $10 million Series A in May, led by F-Prime Capital, for its AI-powered product that simplifies home health logistics.

These engineers raised $8.1 million for a new healthcare AI startup after OpenAI acquired their last company. See the pitch deck they used.

Charta Health raised $8.1 million in a seed round from Bain Capital Ventures in February for its AI that reviews patient charts to automate administrative work.

Check out the exclusive pitch deck startup Doctronic used to raise $5 million for its AI agents to replace ‘Dr. Google’

Union Square Ventures led Doctronic’s $5 million seed round in April. The startup aims to connect patients with AI agents for fast, anonymous, and personalized healthcare advice.

Here’s the pitch deck that Point72-backed Heidi Health used to raise $65 million to battle in the AI scribe race

Heidi’s October Series B, led by Steve Cohen’s Point72 Private Investments, valued the startup at $465 million post-money. Heidi sells ambient clinical documentation tech.

Here’s an exclusive look at the pitch deck that landed healthcare AI copilot Navina $55 million in funding from Goldman Sachs

Navina connects disparate health data to surface clinical insights for providers. The startup announced its $55 million Series C funding round, led by Goldman Sachs’ growth equity unit, in March.

Healthcare AI startup Qventus just raised $105 million from private equity giant KKR. Here’s the pitch deck it used.

Qventus announced its Series C in January. The startup’s latest tech helps automate non-clinical tasks before and after surgeries.

See the exclusive pitch deck Sensi.AI used to raise $45 million to boost home healthcare for seniors with AI

Sensi.AI works with home care agencies to monitor aging patients with its audio-only in-home devices, powered by predictive AI. Qumra Capital led its October Series C.