Paul Meade, the Apple executive overseeing the Apple Vision Pro headset and the company’s smart glasses initiatives, is reportedly leaving Apple to join OpenAI’s hardware division, according to reports.
Meade currently serves as a vice president at Apple and has played a key leadership role in the company’s spatial computing and wearable technology efforts. In addition to leading work related to the Vision Pro headset, he reportedly oversaw development initiatives tied to Apple’s upcoming AI-powered smart glasses project, which is expected to launch next year.
The move marks another high-profile transition from Apple to OpenAI as competition intensifies across artificial intelligence, wearable devices, and next-generation consumer hardware technologies.
Reports suggest Meade’s departure comes amid broader leadership and organizational changes within Apple’s hardware engineering division. Bloomberg reported that the restructuring follows the expected elevation of John Ternus to a larger leadership role within Apple, leading to changes in reporting structures and responsibilities across the hardware organization.
While Apple’s Vision Pro headset introduced the company’s entry into mixed reality and spatial computing, the premium-priced device reportedly faced slower-than-expected market adoption. Apple is now increasingly focusing on lighter and more affordable AI-enabled smart glasses as part of its longer-term wearable technology strategy, aiming to compete more directly with smart eyewear products being developed by rivals including Meta.
At OpenAI, Meade is expected to join the company’s expanding hardware initiative, which is already being developed in collaboration with former Apple Chief Design Officer Jony Ive. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has previously described the planned AI device ecosystem as offering a more natural and less disruptive user experience compared to smartphones.
The reported hiring reflects growing competition among major technology companies to develop AI-native consumer hardware, combining generative AI, wearable computing, intelligent assistants, and next-generation user interfaces.
The broader technology industry is currently witnessing increased investment in AI-powered devices, smart wearables, mixed reality systems, and personalized computing platforms as companies seek to define the next major consumer technology category beyond smartphones.
