OpenAI, Qualcomm and MediaTek Reportedly Building Phone Chip

Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst at TF International Securities, posted on X that OpenAI is co-developing a smartphone processor with Qualcomm and MediaTek. He identified Luxshare as the exclusive partner for system co-design and manufacturing and said mass production is targeted for 2028. Kuo added that specifications and supplier roles are expected to be finalized by late 2026 or early 2027.

Kuo described the program as pairing custom silicon with an operating system designed to run AI agents that handle tasks instead of traditional apps. He said the chip would support a mix of on-device and cloud inference and that the device would track user context in real time.

“Only by fully controlling both the operating system and hardware can OpenAI deliver a comprehensive AI agent service,” Kuo wrote on X.

None of the companies named in Kuo’s post confirmed the plan. OpenAI did not respond to requests for comment.

The market reacted quickly to the unverified report. Qualcomm’s shares rose as much as 12% intraday after the post, before falling back later in the session. Qualcomm is scheduled to report second-quarter results this week, with analysts projecting revenue near $10.56 billion.

Past efforts to sell purpose-built AI devices have had limited commercial success. The Humane AI Pin was discontinued, and the Rabbit R1 received broadly negative reviews.

The report follows internal changes at OpenAI earlier this year. In March, then-head of applications Fidji Simo told staff the company needed to simplify efforts and reduce fragmentation across projects. After that reorganization, OpenAI shut down the Sora consumer video app and folded its OpenAI for Science unit. Several senior employees left in April, according to internal accounts.

Separately, OpenAI acquired Jonny Ive’s hardware startup io for $6.4 billion in May 2025 and is developing a non-phone wearable with initial products targeted for the second half of 2026. Kuo’s smartphone chip initiative would be a separate, multi-year program.

Apple designs its own chips for its devices. The report from a supply-chain analyst remains unconfirmed, and technical and commercial details are expected to be worked out over the next 12 to 18 months.