Amid hardware legal battle, OpenAI releases a $230 keyboard for Codex

OpenAI is officially entering the hardware market with the launch of a $230 light-up keyboard designed to pair with its AI coding assistant, Codex.

The Codex Micro, co-designed with specialty keyboard designer Work Louder, is being advertised as a fancy new way for ChatGPT users to manage their fleets of AI coding agents — the semi-autonomous bots that can write and execute code with little human input.

The device comes equipped with light-up “Agent Keys” that show agent status, customizable Command Keys that act as shortcuts for frequent Codex actions, and a joystick for launching common workflows. It also has a dial that adjusts how much “reasoning” — essentially, how much time and computing power — an agent uses on a given task (agent reasoning level).

The idea is that, instead of managing your agents through your phone or desktop app, you can now use the Micro as your “command center for agentic work,” as OpenAI put its. It’ll also probably just look really cool sitting on your desk. The device is controllable and customizable via the ChatGPT desktop app.

OpenAI told TechCrunch in an email that the Micro is a limited-run collaboration, signaling that it’s more of a novelty item than a product designed for mass appeal. It seems like a flashy bauble designed to herald the company’s entrance into the hardware market.

The more consequential hardware news arrived Tuesday. A yet-to-be-released OpenAI device that Bloomberg revealed sounds like it is being designed for the long haul. It’s described as a portable, screenless smart speaker that integrates with ChatGPT and involves “mechanical elements that can move on their own.” 

At this juncture, it’s difficult to imagine how all of those disparate details — screenless, portable, moving parts — will come together into a coherent product (OpenAI isn’t saying). But it leaves an intriguing picture, to say the least. It also sounds like it’s not done yet. The Bloomberg report highlights that the item is still in development and subject to change.

This new device is also reportedly being designed by former engineers from Apple — a company that is currently suing OpenAI for trade theft.

That connection hasn’t gone unnoticed, least of all by Apple. Apple last week sued OpenAI, accusing the company’s senior leadership of a deliberate strategy to extract its confidential information; it alleges OpenAI used that information in developing its own hardware device. OpenAI has denied wrongdoing.

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