Opal Rebrands as Electronics After $40 Million OpenAI Bet on AI Audio Device
Updated
Updated · WIRED · Jun 2
Opal Rebrands as Electronics After $40 Million OpenAI Bet on AI Audio Device
1 articles · Updated · WIRED · Jun 2
Summary
$40 million from OpenAI backed Opal Camera’s shift to Opal Electronics, valuing the startup at about $275 million as it moves beyond webcams into AI consumer hardware.
An AI-powered audio product due in three to four months drove the investment; Sam Altman, OpenAI researchers and executives at xAI, Anthropic and Thinking Machines are already testing it.
OpenAI is now Opal’s largest shareholder, but the startup retains its intellectual property and says it can partner with any AI lab, with model-switching talks underway with OpenAI, Anthropic and xAI.
The pivot traces back to a 2022 OpenAI visit that included a ChatGPT preview, while Opal says it will stay small, phase out webcams over time and release two more products within 12 months.
Opal is entering a market where AI gadgets such as Humane’s Ai Pin and Rabbit R1 have largely flopped, positioning its design-led approach as a more measured alternative.