After Microsoft and Google released devices one after the other in quick succession, Apple has been under pressure for months to convince many who have doubted its AI approach.
New Delhi: In an effort to catch up to competitors that are embracing the cutting-edge technology faster than Apple, the company presented "Apple Intelligence," a suite of new AI capabilities for its highly sought-after gadgets, on Monday. The company also announced a collaboration with OpenAI.
After Microsoft and Google released devices one after the other in quick succession, Apple has been under pressure for months to convince many who have doubted its AI approach.
However, chief executive Tim Cook stated that this most recent action will "take the experience of Apple products to new heights" as he launched the yearly Worldwide Developers Conference at the tech giant's headquarters in Cupertino, California, a Silicon Valley metropolis.
Apple and OpenAI collaborated to assist achieve this goal, and the release of ChatGPT in 2022 marked the beginning of a new age for generative artificial intelligence.
"We are thrilled to be working with Apple to incorporate ChatGPT into their products later this year," stated OpenAI. I think you're going to love it," the company's CEO, Sam Altman, said on social media.
A new iteration of the iOS 18 operating system, which was also revealed on Monday during the week-long conference, would also have Apple Intelligence.
Apple officials emphasised that Apple Intelligence had privacy controls in place to enhance the functionality of its Siri digital assistant and other products without stealing customer data.
Analysts claim that Apple's main problem has been integrating ChatGPT-style AI, which ravenously consumes data, into its products without undermining the strongly emphasised customer privacy and security.
According to Craig Federighi, senior vice president of software engineering at Apple, the technology "puts powerful generative models right at the core of your iPhone, iPad, and Mac."
"It draws on your personal context to give you intelligence that's most helpful and relevant for you, and it protects your privacy at every step."
However, Elon Musk, the billionaire behind SpaceX and Tesla, took aim at the collaboration, declaring that he will forbid iPhone use at his firms due to the risk to data security.
"Once Apple turns over your data to OpenAI, they have no idea what's truly happening. In a social media post, Musk stated, "They're selling you down the river."
In addition to developing xAI, his own competitor to OpenAI, Musk is suing the firm he co-founded in 2015.
With Apple Intelligence, which is based solely on internal corporate technology, customers will be able to create custom emojis by describing items in ordinary language or make concise email summaries directly from their mailbox.
According to Apple, the AI-enhanced Siri voice assistant will also get an update, showing up as a pulsing light on the edge of your home screen.
Since its introduction more than a decade ago, GPT-4o, the newest assistant from OpenAI, has eclipsed Siri, making it a feature of the past.
Last month, GPT-4o made waves when Scarlett Johansson, an actress, rejected an invitation to collaborate with OpenAI and claimed that the business was using her voice to play the assistant.
Although it has refuted this, OpenAI has stopped using the new voice in its products.
Offers ChatGPT
According to Federighi, users can opt to employ ChatGPT to improve Siri's response to specific queries as part of the OpenAI agreement.
Techsponential analyst Avi Greengart remarked, "It sounds like it's Apple -- then if it needs ChatGPT, it offers it to you."
"The implementation is what is special here."
The collaboration with OpenAI was non-exclusive, in contrast to Apple's historic search alliance with Google, which has come under regulatory investigation for antitrust.
Apple stated that it will soon announce support for other AI models.
Since the beginning of the ChatGPT-sparked craze, the Steve Jobs-founded firm has been extremely silent about AI, with Apple first shunning the phrase entirely.
However, the pressure got to be too much, as Wall Street helped Microsoft overtake Apple to become the largest corporation in the world by stock price, primarily as a result of the Windows maker's open use of AI.
The AI revelations did not seem to please Wall Street investors, as seen by Apple's share price falling by about two percent at Monday's close.
