We've known for a while that Apple is intending to announce generative AI features across its platforms at WWDC 2024, but now we have much more detail about what those could be - and what it may be lacking.
That comes from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, who goes deep into Apple's AI challenges in the latest issue of his Power On newsletter.
We'd been wondering if Apple would use on-device LLMs (large language models) or send data to the cloud for processing, and Gurman suggests both will be true. Apple's own LLM will power on-device AI features, while high-end Mac chips are being used in data centers.
Siri is also likely to get changes, with a "more conversational feel" to help day-to-day usage which Apple reportedly calls "proactive intelligence". This will include summarizing notifications, offering a summary of news articles, transcribing voice memos, suggesting apps, and more. Gurman also says AI-based editing is also expected to come to photos, but that "none of those features will impress people who have used AI in Adobe Inc.’s apps for the last several months."
What about a chatbot?
While Apple isn't expected to offer its own chatbot (Gurman suggests the reticence to do so may come from questionable responses from competitor's own chatbots that have caused controversy), it appears OpenAI has won the race to partner with Apple on iOS 18 (talks have been ongoing with Google, but there's no agreement yet).
The company, which revealed ChatGPT-4o (and a Mac app for its chatbot) this month, will reportedly provide technology for iOS 18, with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman working to ensure the infrastructure can handle an influx of Apple users this year.
Apple will likely move to build its own chatbot in the future, Gurman suggests, but for now the combination of its own features and OpenAI's chatbot "will be enough to get the job done."
Closing out, Gurman says "I don’t expect Apple’s in-house AI announcements to be nearly as impressive as what OpenAI and Google have already showcased", and that Apple's executives have "admitted internally that they’re playing catch-up", with a concern users won't warm to, or use, the new AI features.
With Siri and AI upgrades on an annual schedule since they're tied to the operating system releases, however, Apple could be catching up for some time.
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