OpenAI keeps poaching talent from Apple: report

OpenAI is drawing increasing numbers of employees from Apple as it accelerates work on its first hardware devices, according to a recent report by The Information.

The AI company has recruited more than two dozen Apple staff this year, up from about 10 in 2024. Many of the hires came from Apple's wearables, cameras, audio, and interface design teams. Notable recruits include Cyrus Daniel Irani, who designed Siri's waveform, and Erik de Jong, a former senior figure on the Apple Watch team.

The hiring wave is being led by Tang Tan, OpenAI's chief hardware officer and a 25-year Apple veteran, states the report. Tan, once responsible for translating iPhone designer Jony Ive's ideas into mass production, has described OpenAI as offering more freedom and collaboration than Apple's slower product cycles, the report says.

OpenAI has also acquired io Products, a startup co-founded by Ive and Tan, for $6.5 billion, earlier this year. Ive, while still running his LoveFrom studio, now spends increasing time at OpenAI's offices, adds the report.

To lure staff, OpenAI is reportedly offering stock packages worth more than $1 million, along with promises of quicker decision-making and fewer layers of bureaucracy. Some Apple workers are said to be frustrated by incremental updates and weak stock gains.

The company is also moving into Apple's supply chain, with Luxshare agreeing to build at least one OpenAI device and Goertek approached for components. Products under consideration include a smart speaker, glasses, a voice recorder, and a wearable pin, with launches targeted for 2026 or 2027.