Tim Cook has confirmed that Apple will unveil the progress it has made on AI as a company later this year.
Apple is expected to introduce new AI features to its hardware and software as early as WWDC 2024. According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple expects iOS 18 to be the biggest update in the company’s history, no doubt related to developments in artificial intelligence. That sentiment was seemingly confirmed by Cupertino this week.
Speaking on Apple’s quarterly earnings call Thursday, where the company unveiled strong holiday-season sales, Cook said that Apple “will continue to invest in these and other technologies that will shape the future,” including artificial intelligence. He added that Apple is spending “a tremendous amount of time and effort” in the field and is “excited to share the details of our ongoing work in that space later this year.”
Apple’s AI step up
2023 saw an explosion of generative AI and LLM software, notably OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Big rivals like Microsoft, Google, and beyond are all now focusing heavily on AI, and now Apple looks set to arrive at the table at its usual measured pace.
The most obvious AI upgrade Apple could make would be the addition of generative AI to Siri. At least one rumor says Apple has an internal project called “Ajax”, which appears to be some kind of chatbot or LLM similar to existing iterations on the market.
More broadly, we know of six products Apple plans to improve with AI. Beyond Siri, Apple is also reportedly looking into bringing more AI to Xcode to speed up app development. Apple Music will reportedly receive AI-generated playlists, while Pages and Keynote could get tools to automatically generate slides or respond to information requests. Finally, Messages might also get a boost to autocorrect and auto-complete.
If all this is indeed coming to iOS 18 later this year, we can also expect Apple to focus on the processing power of its best iPhones for 2024 when they’re announced in September. The neural engine onboard its A-series chips, in particular the new A18 line, should provide the potent hardware Apple needs to deliver beefed-up AI on the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro.
