A veteran former Apple design chief, Jony Ive, who is credited with influencing the company’s product design, is joining OpenAI, a company that specializes in ChatGPT.

According to a joint announcement from Ive and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, OpenAI will merge with Ive’s technology company, io.

The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, and other media entities have reported that the proposed transaction is estimated to be worth approximately $6.5 billion.

According to The New York Times, OpenAI previously owned a 23% stake in io.

CNN’s inquiry regarding the valuation of the transaction was not promptly addressed by OpenAI spokespersons.

According to an announcement video posted on OpenAI’s website, Ive and his distinct design firm, LoveFrom, will assume design responsibilities for OpenAI and io.

The video also stated that they intend to disclose their work next year.

The collaboration is timely for technology companies, which are currently in the process of integrating AI into their software and developing new products that are powered by the technology.

These products include smart eyewear, jewelry, and new types of portable devices.

Altman stated in the video, “I believe we have the chance to essentially reimagine the concept of computer use.”

According to the announcement, I have been working with OpenAI for two years.

In September, The Times reported that he has been collaborating with OpenAI to develop a product that “utilizes artificial intelligence to develop a computing experience that is less socially disruptive than the iPhone.”

In the video, Altman stated that he had recently received a prototype of the device, which he referred to as “the most exceptional technological innovation the world has ever witnessed.”

In 2019, he departed the organization after nearly three decades to establish his own business.

Ive has been primarily attributed with the establishment of Apple’s iconic streamlined aesthetic and the revival of the company’s fortunes in the late 1990s.

CEO Tim Cook stated in a press release that my “role in Apple’s revival cannot be overstated” after I severed ways with the company.

OpenAI is widely regarded as the industry leader in the consumer AI sector.

In late 2022, the ChatGPT chatbot, which was highly successful, catapulted AI into the public eye, inspiring both tech titans and entrepreneurs to design their products around the technology.

The announcement by Ive and Altman is made one day after Google announced its intention to introduce AI-powered smart eyewear, which it regards as the next evolution of the personal computer.

Meta’s Ray-Ban smart spectacles have already been a relative success with consumers, with a minimum of 2 million pairs sold.

However, consumers have not responded favorably to certain new technological devices that were designed to facilitate AI interactions, such as the Humane AI Pin.

“The products that we are utilizing to connect us to technology that is unimaginable are decades old,” Ive stated in the video.

“Therefore, it is only logical to assume that there is something beyond these legacy products.”