Apple’s Vision Pro Hardware Chief Paul Meade Joins OpenAI Hardware Division
AAPL•Paul Meade, Apple's vice president responsible for Vision Pro headset and smart glasses hardware engineering for seven years, will depart by next week to lead OpenAI’s new hardware division. His deputy Fletcher Rothkopf will assume leadership of Apple’s Vision Products Group, creating a talent vacuum that could delay mixed-reality devices.
1. Meade Departure Details
Paul Meade, vice president of spatial computing hardware, will exit Apple by next week to spearhead OpenAI’s hardware division. He has led engineering on the Vision Pro headset and upcoming smart glasses for seven years.
2. Impact on Apple Vision Products Group
His deputy, Fletcher Rothkopf, will now oversee the Vision Products Group, inheriting responsibility for ongoing mixed-reality hardware projects. Meade’s departure leaves a leadership gap that could affect release schedules for Apple’s next-generation glasses.
3. OpenAI’s Hardware Ambitions
At OpenAI, Meade will build a new family of AI-native devices, joining a roster of former Apple designers and hardware experts. The move follows OpenAI’s $6.5 billion acquisition of a defectors’ AI hardware startup last year as it expands into end-user devices.
