Exclusive: Ha Thai departs Meta to lead comms for OpenAI devices
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Photo: Courtesy of Ha Thai
Ha Thai has departed Meta to join OpenAI to lead communications for devices.
Why it matters: The AI company is expected to unveil its first device this year.
Context: Thai has worked in consumer hardware comms for nearly two decades, most recently leading communications for Meta's Reality Labs and supporting Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth.
- In her nearly 10 years at Facebook/Meta, she oversaw launches of products including Oculus/Meta Quest VR headsets and Meta AI glasses.
- Before that, Thai led product, partnership and developer communications at Google's Nest and supported founder Tony Fadell.
- Prior to Nest, she also worked on comms for streaming devices at Roku and computer peripherals and accessories at Logitech.
Between the lines: As vice president of communications for devices at OpenAI, Thai will work closely with Sarah O'Brien and the team at LoveFrom, the creative collective led by former Apple design chief Jony Ive.
- OpenAI acquired Ive's AI devices startup io last year for $5 billion in stock. While Ive and LoveFrom remain independent, OpenAI said they "have assumed deep design and creative responsibilities across OpenAI."
- The deal signaled OpenAI's belief that the AI era will spawn a new generation of novel consumer devices, per Axios' Ina Fried.
The big picture: While OpenAI has offered few details on its hardware ambitions, consumer devices would offer a more tangible and marketable AI use case for the average person.
- AI companies face a major PR challenge as people worry about job security, rising electricity costs, environmental concerns and wealth concentration.
What to watch: OpenAI has filed confidential draft IPO paperwork just days after rival Anthropic submitted its confidential filings with the SEC.
Go deeper: OpenAI's big hardware bet
