Startup Friend plans to launch a $99 AI smart necklace intended to be a digital companion for users; however, the company has announced a delay in shipping the first batch of products, now expected in the third quarter. The original plan to ship to pre-order customers in the first quarter now seems unfeasible. Co-founder and CEO Avi Schiffman stated in an email to customers: 'While I hoped to ship in the first quarter of this year, I still need to refine the product further. In fact,

Apple's iPhone design director, Evans Hankey, has joined Jony Ive's LoveFrom to develop artificial intelligence hardware in collaboration with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. The project is referred to as the 'AI iPhone' and is funded by SoftBank, with Jony Ive and Hankey responsible for the design while Sam Altman handles software development. The concepts currently being discussed by LoveFrom include home devices that may resemble the HomePod, but specific details have not been disclosed.