Analyst Ming‑Chi Kuo says OpenAI’s AI‑agent smartphone will move from a 2028 launch window to mass production in the first half of 2027. The shift reflects rapid growth in the AI phone market and hints at a possible year‑end IPO for the startup.

Kuo reveals MediaTek will supply a bespoke Dimensity 9600 SoC, fabricated on TSMC’s N2P node later this year. The chipset pairs a dual‑NPU layout with LPDDR6 memory and UFS 5.0 storage, aiming to handle on‑device inference without cloud lag.

Imaging receives special attention: an upgraded ISP promises enhanced HDR processing to improve real‑world visual sensing. Security features such as pKVM and inline hashing are slated to protect the device’s AI workloads.

If production stays on schedule, OpenAI could ship roughly 30 million units across 2027‑28, positioning the phone as a serious contender in the emerging AI‑first hardware segment.