Ive Work to Do 🏗️🤖

👀 TLDR

In this week’s What’s Appening, we cover the acquisition of Jony Ive’s io by OpenAI. Everyone’s ignoring the startup purchase and focusing on the fact that Ive, the original designer behind iPhone, will join OpenAI to lead its push into hardware. We also have news on the latest crazy TikTok trend, what Apple might be doing at WWDC, BNPL woes, and more, including the latest from the team at 3Advance.

🎬 Our Top Take

🔨📱 AI Hardware – Legendary iPhone Designer Jony Ive Joins OpenAI

Back before any of us had heard of products like ChatGPT and Gemini, there was a theory that computer hardware would have to be reimagined to harness the potential of AI. Attempts to do something different with devices – Rabbit r1, Humane AI Pin – have largely flopped, so you can understand the excitement now that OpenAI has partnered with the man credited with helping to kickstart the mobile computing era by designing the iPhone, Jony Ive. OpenAI has bought Ive’s design company, io, for $6.5 billion, and the plan seems to be to let Ive oversee the design of a range of AI devices that integrate into people’s lives, moving beyond screens and interfaces. Ive and Sam Altman – who are friends IRL – appeared together in one of the most weirdly presented mission statements (it looks like a wedding invite) we’ve seen in a while. It didn’t actually give a lot of concrete detail about what Sam & Jony are planning, although Altman suggested it would be a ‘third core device’, meaning it is something you put on your desk after your PC and smartphone. Ive added that he does not like wearables, so no glasses, rings, or watches. Nonetheless, a consistent question has been running through every major tech publication this week: Could a Jony Ive design change the world again? OpenAI just made a multi-billion-dollar bet to find out. #Jony&Sam Read more here.

📲 App of the Week: Pico AI

Microlearning – the process of squeezing in study in short bursts – is all the rage right now, and Pico AI is one of the early frontrunners in a fast-growing sector. Download the app, fill in some interests you’d like to focus on – anything from growing flowers to the history of Rome – and the AI will start building quick-fire courses for you with short, info-packed tutorials. The app is free to download, but like language-learning apps, you will have to pay to remove ads and get the most out of it feature-wise. Check it out for iOS here and Android here.

🧐 Stat of the Week: 20m P/D

📈📉 ChatGPT – App Usage Data Shows Steady Rise & 2025 Spike

We all know that ChatGPT broke numerous adoption records, but the data is interesting to note how often we use the AI tool and how it has changed over time. Since its launch (as an app) in May 2023, average daily usage has tripled to 20 minutes per day. What’s more intriguing is that it stood at 13m p/d on average on January 1st, so the trend is accelerating. It’d be interesting to know how much of the spike is down to all those viral images that have flooded the web over the past few months. #TimeSpent Read more here.

🗞️ Other Stories

📍 Meanwhile at 3Advance

While a long weekend is always a chance to rest and recharge, this one was, more importantly, a time to reflect on those who made the ultimate sacrifice. We hope you found the time to celebrate this Memorial Day in your own way. With our headquarters in Arlington, VA, we welcome the families of fallen service men and women who visited Arlington Cemetery this weekend, and we thank all of you.

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