During the recent annual shareholders meeting, Apple CEO Tim Cook hinted again about their generative AI plans. He stated that the company will reveal its AI-related announcement later this year. Apple has been late to the party, with players like Google, Samsung, and Microsoft adding GenAI features to their products. But it looks like the company plans to catch up this year.
Apple’s AI Integration
According to the latest report from Reuters, Tim Cook highlighted the potential of generative AI to transform productivity and problem-solving within the Apple ecosystem.
“The company will break new ground in generative AI in 2024, and we believe it will unlock transformative opportunities for our users,” Cook explained.
Despite Apple being seen as slower in adopting generative AI, Cook reassured shareholders that AI is already integrated into Apple’s products. He hinted at AI improving data search on Apple devices and emphasised the AI capabilities of Mac computers powered by Apple silicon.
“Every Mac with Apple silicon is a powerful AI machine. It’s the best computer for AI today,” Cook stated.
Apple Abandons its Electric Car Project to Focus on GenAI
Interestingly, this development occurred just after reports indicated that Apple had abandoned its decade-long pursuit of constructing an electric car in favour of intensifying efforts on its generative AI projects.
According to Bloomberg, two Apple executives informed employees that, as the company phases out the team dedicated to the car — internally referred to as the Special Projects Group or SPG — some personnel will be redirected to the artificial intelligence division.
The report further stated that these staff members will now concentrate on generative AI projects under the leadership of executive John Giannandrea.
Apple is Betting Big on AI with iOS 18
The tech giant is actively working on a range of AI capabilities to include in the iOS 18, slated to be launched this year alongside the latest iPhone 16 series.
According to a separate report from Bloomberg, Apple is enhancing both Siri and the iPhone’s integrated Spotlight search tool using extensive language models, aiming to improve the accuracy of their responses to more intricate queries. The overhauled version of Spotlight may also provide enhanced integration with specific app functions and features.
Additionally, Apple has been investigating AI-driven functionalities that could empower users to automatically create playlists in Apple Music and presentation slides in the Keynote app, as mentioned in the report. There are also speculations about other apps, such as Health, Messages, Numbers, Pages, and Shortcuts, gaining deeper AI integration in iOS 18, with the possibility of more apps receiving similar treatment.
