Startup Cyclon introduces a phone whose interface is an artificial intelligence agent, capable of using apps on the user’s behalf. Unveiled on Monday, November 2nd on X by its co-founder Adam Zinebi, the project aims to replace the iPhone. The final phone, featuring custom hardware, is expected in the second quarter of 2027.
- Cyclon dévoile un smartphone dont l’interface est un agent d’intelligence artificielle.
- L’agent utilise les applications, en crée au besoin et exécute les tâches en arrière-plan.
- Le système repose sur Android, mais le traitement des requêtes passe par des fournisseurs d’IA externes.
- Les réservations sont ouvertes avec un acompte de 199 dollars, pour un prix final estimé à 699 dollars.
The example chosen for the demonstration is deliberately mundane. Finding a contract in Drive, sending it to a colleague on WhatsApp, and then calling them currently requires about ten actions across three apps. Cyclon reduces this sequence to a single spoken phrase. According to the startup, the agent uses already installed apps with the user’s accounts, creates any that are missing, and executes tasks in the background.
A reservation is possible with a refundable $199 deposit (approx. €180), to be applied towards a final estimated price of $699 before tax (approx. €625). The definitive phone still needs approval from the FCC, the U.S. telecom regulator. In the meantime, the first U.S. buyers receive a Pixel 8a within 30 days, which runs Cyclon OS as a prototype.
A two-person team born from a hackathon
The company’s Y Combinator profile lists two employees based in San Francisco: Adam Zinebi, CEO, and Thomas Kiefer, CTO. Their collaboration began on May 17, 2026, at the Call My Agent Hackathon held at Y Combinator’s offices. Facing 91 teams, they took first place with Drishti Jain thanks to Gavel, an agent you text to sell an item: it posts the listing, chats with buyers, negotiates the price, and sets up the meeting. The first prize entitled them to an interview at YC, and the company behind Cyclon is still called TextGavel Inc.
A system built on Android
Cyclon OS is based on LineageOS, an alternative Android ROM, combined with microG, a free reimplementation of Google Play services. The agent reads the screen, taps, and scrolls, without waiting for a developer to provide a dedicated interface. When an app is missing, it writes the code in a sandbox (an isolated environment hosted in the cloud), tests it, fixes it, and then installs it like a real app.
The brain, however, is not in the phone. According to Cyclon’s FAQ, to execute a request, the device sends what is displayed on the screen, our messages, or our location to its AI providers, without specifying which ones. The assistant’s memory is stored on the device, but certain passages are also transmitted when a request requires it. Adam Zinebi also assured a user that everything happens “in your pocket, not in a cloud.” The startup also acknowledges that, without Google certification, certain banking, payment, or enterprise apps may refuse to work.
Google, OpenAI and other players
What Cyclon calls agent OS involves stating an intent, with the system then deciding which apps to open, in what order, and with what data. Among the giants, Google is the most advanced: since February, Gemini has been able to control third-party apps on Galaxy S26 and Pixel 10 devices, but only in the U.S. and Korea, and on a handful of services like Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, or Starbucks. OpenAI is targeting the same goal and acquired io, Jony Ive’s startup, for about $6.5 billion in 2025. Its first device, expected in 2027, is said to be a screenless speaker, with the phone to come later.
