Apple is gearing up for its annual developer conference, WWDC, and AI is set to be a major theme, as it has been for some time for the industry, especially tech rivals Google and Microsoft.
A new suite of AI tools, Project Greymatter, will be integrated into core iPhone apps. This project is said to use a hybrid approach, processing tasks locally on the device and sending more demanding tasks to the cloud.
Siri is also getting an upgrade with Apple’s own large language models (LLMs) for more natural interactions. They’re even developing a more advanced Siri specifically for the Apple Watch, and probably one with the subscription, as rumored previously.
However, when it comes to AI, Apple seems to be admitting it needs help, as it’s well known in the industry that Apple is said to be running behind its tech rivals Google and Microsoft. Hence, without a homegrown offering, they’re looking to partner with Google and Microsoft-backed OpenAI.
Reports suggest negotiations with Google for access to Gemini were underway. However, Apple, as speculated, sealed the deal with OpenAI. This partnership positions Apple competitively against Samsung devices that rely on Google’s offering.
But there are concerns. OpenAI’s CEO has faced recent controversies, and the company itself has a somewhat unstable structure after the co-founder and many other highly-ranked team members left the team. This is why Apple is still pursuing a deal with Google to offer Gemini as an alternative in the future.
Despite playing catch-up, Apple has a significant advantage – its massive user base. Hundreds of millions of devices will be able to access these new AI features. However, the possibility of features launching as previews suggests the technology might still be under development.
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