OpenAI’s entry into the world of consumer devices is expected to begin with the release of a portable smart speaker that lacks a screen, according to a Bloomberg report on Tuesday. The device is being positioned as “a new type of computer for the AI era,” Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported, adding that it would “serve as a humanlike AI companion that lives in the home.”

The device, which Gurman wrote is still in development, is expected to operate in much the same way today’s smart speakers do: answer questions, play media, operate smart-home appliances, as well as respond to messages and make use of capabilities offered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

But OpenAI’s device is expected to go a bit further into homes by offering a “personality” that would make a humanlike connection with users. It will include “mechanical elements that can move on their own, creating a sense that it is alive,” Bloomberg reported.

The product leak comes days after Apple sued OpenAI, accusing the company of stealing its trade secrets. Apple alleged it “uncovered a pattern of theft of Apple’s trade secrets by OpenAI employees who were formerly at Apple.” Apple also called the instances it uncovered “the tip of the iceberg.”

However, OpenAI feels its new product “veers significantly” from any Apple device currently on the market and that it is “unlikely” its new device violates any Apple trade secrets, according to anonymous sources described as knowledgeable of OpenAI’s plans.

There’s been much speculation lately about OpenAI’s hardware ambitions. The company has been linked to a possible release of AI earbuds later this year or early 2027 and is also said to be working on a smartphone in partnership with component-makers MediaTek, Qualcomm and Luxshare. 

OpenAI’s hardware ambitions have included a high-profile partnership with former Apple designer Jony Ive. One recent rumor was that the devices could include one worn in the ear, but that OpenAI could have as many as five different devices ready by the end of 2028. 

OpenAI didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. 

(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in April 2025 filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)

Strands is the NYT’s latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it’s great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.

Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc’s Wordle today page for the original viral word game.

A security researcher published a wire-level analysis on July 12 proving that xAI’s Grok Build coding CLI was packaging developers’ entire tracked repositories, including full Git history, committed secrets, and API keys, and sending them to a Google Cloud Storage bucket. The upload volume was roughly 27,800 times greater than the data the coding task actually required, according to the analysis.

The researcher, publishing as cereblab, tested version 0.2.93 of Grok Build, intercepted the upload, cloned the git bundle from the captured request, and recovered a file the AI agent had been explicitly told not to open. xAI had marketed the tool with claims that “nothing from your codebase transmitted to xAI servers during a session.” The wire data directly contradicts this.

The privacy toggle that was supposed to prevent data transmission did nothing, according to multiple reports. Grok has a history of privacy issues, including training on X user data without consent in what regulators called a “very likely” breach of EU law. A quarter of European firms have banned Grok entirely in favour of alternatives with better security controls.

Elon Musk confirmed the uploads and said SpaceXAI would delete all prior Grok Build user data. The company documented a “zero data retention” policy and added a /privacy endpoint. A same-client retest observed a server-side flag disabling the uploads. However, no independent audit has confirmed the deletion. Grok Build launched alongside Grok 4.5 as xAI’s answer to Claude Code and Cursor, making the privacy breach particularly damaging for a product positioned to win enterprise developer trust.

• Kokuyo Energy Line replaces discrete sockets with one continuous slot that takes up to five two-prong plugs anywhere along its length
• It won a 2025 Good Design Award thanks to its accessibility, style, and attention to detail
• The Kokuyo Energy Line also offers an inclusive design that allows users with upper limb disabilities to easily use the product with just 1 hand

Kokuyo is a well-known Japanese furniture giant that focuses on both functionality and aesthetics across its furniture and interior design lines.

It regularly collects Good Design Awards even as it runs a public “live office” where users can test out hardware in a workplace setting, in addition to HOWS DESIGN, an inclusive-design program that has birthed multiple successes.

from the good-deals-on-cool-stuff dept

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Note: The Techdirt Deals Store is powered and curated by StackSocial. A portion of all sales from Techdirt Deals helps support Techdirt. The products featured do not reflect endorsements by our editorial team.

Filed Under: daily deal

The nonprofit organisation said it aims to deepen its role as Ireland’s independent source of ecosystem data and help build the country’s leadership position in AI transformation.

Irish nonprofit organisation TechIreland has appointed Niall Norton as its new chief executive officer, replacing interim CEO John O’Dea.

TechIreland gathers and shares data intelligence around the Irish technology ecosystem by tracking more than 14,500 companies, including start-ups, scale-ups, investors, multinationals and support organisations.

It said the appointment comes at a time when the organisation is aiming to deepen its role as Ireland’s independent source of ecosystem data and help build the country’s leadership position in AI transformation.

“The technology ecosystem has multiple stakeholders, all of whom have a vested interest in its success: the start-up and scale-up companies themselves, the Government and State bodies, the investors, the multinational partners, the innovation hubs and the professional services firms,” said Norton.

“All successful technology ecosystems track measures, activity, health and performance of the ecosystem in order for stakeholders to work together effectively. The curation of transparent, reliable and available data in the service of all of these entities is a key element to promoting success.

“TechIreland has done a great job providing this essential curation service that is needed now more than ever. I look forward to working with our partners in the industry to promote Ireland as a location for valuable, sustainable jobs.”

Norton was previously chief financial officer at O2 Ireland and chief executive of Openet, a Dublin-headquartered telecoms software company that began as a start-up before being acquired by Amdocs in 2020.

Brian Caulfield, board director of TechIreland, said: “TechIreland is a crucial piece of national infrastructure for Ireland’s technology ecosystem. As such, it’s great to be able to welcome such a seasoned and successful leader as Niall as CEO. I look forward to working with Niall to continue and enhance the organisation’s mission.”

Norton is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland, holds a certificate in management excellence from Harvard Business School, and has recently completed a programme in software development with the UCD Professional Academy.

At the end of May, TechIreland published its Irish Start-up Funding Review for 2026, a report covering start-up fundraising activity in Ireland in 2025.

Caulfield said at the time: “2025 was very much a curate’s egg. It was good in parts – mainly in Q1, when 69 Irish companies raised a total of €616m. That was the best quarter for fundraising in Ireland for 10 years.

“Unfortunately, the rest of the year saw a return to weakness, with just €376m raised by 250 companies across the rest of the year. Once again, just four outliers represented almost half of all funding (46pc). More widely, the pattern of Irish companies being underfunded relative to international competitors remains a worry.”

In March, the nonprofit released its Female Founder Funding Review 2026, which tracked investment into women-founded start-ups throughout 2025.

The report found that last year, 82 Irish start-ups led by women raised a total of €131m, representing the highest number of women-founded start-ups funded in any given year.

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