News recently emerged that OpenAI – the company behind ChatGPT – is working on a smart speaker.
The Information reported that Jony Ive, Apple's former design guru, is part of the 200-strong team behind a range of devices, which could also include glasses and lamps (both smart, of course).
Unsurprisingly, for a company fueled by AI, the focus is thought to be on proactively 'nudging' users to do things based on their behaviour. For your own benefit, of course.
Naturally, this involves watching what they're doing by the use of a camera and digging into their schedules to – for example – suggest you get an early night before an early flight.
But let's put aside the whole can of worms that is AI for now. The one thing we're wondering, and something of a prerequisite for a smart speaker in our opinion – will it sound any good?
Trigger warning: tech bro love-in below
Jony Ive worked wonders at Apple, there's no denying that. He was responsible for the iPod, the iPhone, AirPods, and, er, the iPod Hi-Fi, an iPod dock which is best forgotten about.
But he likely had little to do with the sound quality of Apple's products (which have been a bit of a mixed bag, though recent devices like the HomePod 2 and AirPods Pro 3 have earned five stars).
So maybe Amazon's Echo range of smart speakers will be a closer comparison? OpenAI's speaker is predicted to cost around $200-$300, which pits it against the $250 Echo Show 10 (3rd gen).
Amazon's Echo speakers are generally pretty good, but it's the cheaper models that score higher in our test rooms. See our reviews of the Echo Show 5 and Echo Dot (4th Gen and 5th Gen) for proof.
Those are also the speakers with staying power – all three are still on sale, while the third-gen Echo Show 10 has gone the way of the Amazon Fire Phone.
These cheaper Amazon speakers do sound pretty good – otherwise they wouldn't score four or five stars. But that's always caveated by the phrase 'for the money'.
If OpenAI is going to ask possibly three times the price of the Echo Show 5 for a smart speaker, it's going to have to sound three times as good. And that's a tall order for a company with no track record of making audio devices.
Sounds like an afterthought
My worry is this will be a speaker that goes heavy on the AI with sound quality left as an afterthought. Whereas I think it should be the other way around.
Designing an audio device around AI is like building a car around the heated seats. Yes, it can be nice to have a toasty behind, but it's not the reason people pick one car over another. They want it to actually drive well.
I have two Echo speakers in my house, and while I do use the voice controls, it's mostly to play either BBC 6 Music or a playlist on Apple Music. If I could remove the screen on my Echo Show in the kitchen, I would. It's just another way for Amazon to serve me adverts.
So come on, OpenAI. You've got seemingly unlimited funds, advanced tech and one of the world's best industrial designers all going for you. Let's not have another iPod Hi-Fi.
MORE:
That was then... Apple iPod Hi-Fi review
More what not to do: our Amazon Echo Dot Max review
This is more like it: best smart speakers
