From Jim
Well, would you wear AI in a pin that you fastened to your clothes? Take a read on the following...Jim
Hardware rivalry: Apple & OpenAI vie for AI gadgets.
The race to release an AI device that people actually like is heating up: Apple may be working on an AI accessory that could come out as early as 2027, The Information reported this week, two days after OpenAI shared an update on its own highly anticipated hardware.
According to The Information: Apple’s gizmo will be an AI pin that you can attach to your clothes, equipped with cameras and microphones for observing your surroundings. The company is aiming to make it roughly the size of an AirTag (1 ¼ inches across).
It’s still in the “early stages” of development.
Hurry up? Apple was already labeled a slow adopter of AI when it pulled a GTA VI last spring and delayed the launch of its new AI-powered Siri until sometime this year (with help from Google Gemini). Now, the iPhone maker may be trying to expedite its rumored wearable to compete directly with OpenAI, which has been teasing a lamp for its genie for months now.
Tight race
OpenAI is “on track” to share the first look of its AI hardware in the second half of this year, a company executive said this week. Don’t assume it’ll be uglier than whatever Apple comes up with: OpenAI is building its device with the former Apple design head Jony Ive.
Details are largely under wraps, but:
OpenAI’s device is in the prototype phase and could hit the market by the end of 2027, Ive said in November.
It’s rumored to be screenless, roughly smartphone-sized, and possibly wearable. Some alleged leaks and reports from Asian publications suggest it could be earbuds.
Do you like eggs? Because some of Apple’s good ones are getting poached. Several dozen Apple engineers have defected to OpenAI in recent months, making Apple execs worry that OpenAI could become “a threat to its underlying business,” Bloomberg reported this week.—ML
From John C
I heard about a possible new product coming out of Apple - the PIN.
Here’s a brief on what the news is saying about it:
Rumors of a new Apple PIN.
The proposed Apple Pin is a wearable AI device currently in early development, designed to be a context-aware assistant that lives on a user's clothing. Unlike existing wearables, this device is intended to understand the real-world environment surrounding the user rather than just relying on input provided through a screen.
Physical Design and Hardware
Form Factor: The device is described as a flat, circular disc made of thin aluminum and glass, roughly the size of a "slightly thicker AirTag".
Interface: It features a single physical button on the edge, which likely handles multiple tasks such as triggering the assistant, muting microphones, or capturing data without requiring a wake phrase.
Sensors and Audio: The pin includes two front-facing cameras—one standard lens for detail and one wide-angle lens for environmental context. It also houses three microphones for audio capture and a built-in speaker for discrete responses.
Charging: Early prototypes suggest a rear charging system similar to that used for the Apple Watch.
Core Functionality and Use Cases
The Apple Pin aims to leverage Apple Intelligence to provide proactive suggestions and real- time information based on what it sees and hears.
Contextual Awareness: The dual-camera system allows the device to recognize objects, understand scenes, and identify parts during repairs or ingredients while cooking.
Productivity and Translation: With its triple-microphone array, the pin could summarize meetings, transcribe conversations, or translate speech in real-time.
Navigation and Safety: It can pull directions on the fly and act as a precision finding beacon using Apple’s U1 or U2 Ultra-Wideband (UWB) chips.
Accessibility: The device could offer "scene descriptions" and "object alerts" to assist users with visual impairments.
Technical Foundation and Integration
The product relies heavily on Apple's existing hardware and software ecosystem:
Custom Silicon: The pin would utilize Apple's efficient neural engines optimized for low-power, on-device AI inference.
Apple Intelligence: It is built around a system of on-device models for tasks like summarization, with heavier requests routed through private cloud compute.
Ecosystem Integration: A "non-negotiable" aspect of the project is tight integration with iPhone and iCloud.
Development Timeline and Challenges
Apple is reportedly targeting a launch window around 2027, though the project remains in early stages and could be delayed or cancelled if it fails to meet internal standards. Significant hurdles include: Apple is reportedly targeting a launch window around 2027, though the project remains in early stages and could be delayed or cancelled if it fails to meet internal standards. Significant hurdles include:
Battery and Thermals: Packing cameras and neural processing into a coin-sized chassis creates risks for heat buildup and rapid battery drain.
Privacy: Because the device features visible cameras, Apple will need to implement obvious capture indicators and extremely strong privacy controls to ensure social acceptability.