Apple on Monday will try to convince skeptics about its artificial intelligence strategy after its rivals moved to adopt artificial intelligence.
Artificial intelligence, and perhaps even a partnership with ChatGPT maker OpenAI, will likely be a key theme at the start of Apple’s WWDC developer conference in Silicon Valley, according to analysts.
The conference is Apple’s annual gathering for developers creating apps for the iPad, Mac and iPhone — and CEO Tim Cook will be working hard to convince his audience that the company is a major AI player.
While Apple has been quietly building AI features into its hardware for years, it has yet to solidify its overall strategy or adopt the ChatGPT-style genetic AI that took the world by storm in late 2022.
Meanwhile, rivals Microsoft and Google released products back-to-back, pushing Microsoft and artificial intelligence chipmaker Nvidia to overtake Apple as the world’s biggest companies when measured by stock prices.
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Apple’s share price has been on a rollercoaster ride since the artificial intelligence frenzy broke out, but believers see Monday’s announcements as the start of a new chapter for the iPhone maker.
While his silence has been deafening, all that will change on June 10, when Apple crosses the AI Rubicon,” predicted Dipanjan Chatterjee, analyst at research firm Forrester.
At the center of the announcements will almost certainly be an update to Apple’s iPhone operating system, iOS 18, which is expected to give artificial intelligence a central role.
Silicon Valley is convinced that genetic artificial intelligence will fundamentally change the way users interact with smartphones and computers, but the technology is still in its early stages and the benefits are not entirely clear yet.
Also widely rumored is a “flagship” collaboration with OpenAI that could include a dedicated chatbot for iPhone owners and supercharge the much-talked-about Siri.
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All of these announcements will set the stage for an expected iPhone 16 launch later this year and open the door to a “growth renaissance” for the company, Wedbush Securities senior analyst Daniel Ives said.
Since Apple makes most of its money from selling iPhones, artificial intelligence will likely focus on its devices and services that work together more seamlessly, Creative Strategies analyst Carolina Milanesi said.
“At the end of the day for Apple, it’s about getting people to upgrade their iPhone,” Milanesi said. “We’ll see if Apple gives them a compelling reason to do it.”
“Stone Test”
The announcements at WWDC will be a “touchstone” for Apple’s ability to integrate ChatGPT-style genetic AI into all its devices and services, said Emarketer senior analyst Gadjo Sevilla.
“Any mistake by Apple at this juncture could see it lose its place as a technology leader, especially as it now sits between two AI giants with real products and rolling out roadmaps that will do well over the next two years ».
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CEO Cook already announced his commitment to artificial intelligence, putting more powerful and AI-ready chips in iPad and MacBook versions earlier this year.
But the big challenge for Apple is how to infuse the technology into its products without weakening its much-touted privacy and security, analysts say.
ChatGPT-like AI is voraciously feeding data, and Apple will be in a difficult position to fight the AI race while living up to its traditional position of protecting data privacy.
“Too much control of an AI ecosystem could cause Apple to lose ground or fall behind while other companies move fast and break things,” Seville said.
Source: AFP