News
What to expect from Apple’s AI launch
from Apple (AAPL) The Worldwide Developers Conference event begins Monday, June 10, at the company’s headquarters in Cupertino, California, with a talk by CEO Tim Cook. One of Apple’s most anticipated events in years, WWDC 2024 is expected to serve as the launch point for the company’s big push into generative AI.
Wall Street is eager to find out what Apple has been cooking up in recent months, as its rivals begin to roll out, or in some cases, roll back, their own generative AI offerings. Apple has largely been on the sidelines of the AI conversation, save for a few fleeting mentions during earnings calls and the like.
During the company’s Q2 conference call in May, Cook appeared to bring up potential AI news from WWDC while touting Apple’s capabilities in hardware and software.
“We believe in the transformative power and promise of AI and believe we have advantages that will differentiate us in this new era, including Apple’s unique combination of seamless integration of hardware, software and services; innovative Apple silicon with our industry-leading neural system. motor; and our unwavering focus on privacy,” he said.
If that wasn’t enough, Apple marketing chief Greg Joswiak posted on X, formerly Twitter, that WWDC will be “Absolutely Amazing!” and be sure to capitalize both words. Take it? AI
Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks during Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) at the Apple Park campus in Cupertino, California, on June 5, 2023. (JOSH EDELSON/AFP via Getty Images) (JOSH EDELSON via Getty Images) )
In addition to unveiling its broader AI strategy, Apple will also release the latest versions of its various operating systems, including iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, macOS, tvOS, and the first major updates to the company’s visionOS, which powers Vision Pro. mixed reality. headset.
Still, everything else is pretty much guaranteed to take a backseat to Apple’s AI news.
Siri gets smarter and much more
According to Apple soothsayer Mark Gurman of Bloomberg, the highlight of WWDC 2024 will be a new AI-powered generative version of Apple’s Siri smart assistant. The feature will allow Siri to control individual features within apps, making it much more versatile than Siri on your current iPhone.
Siri has been languishing for years, proving more useful for setting timers and playing music on Spotify than acting as a true digital sidekick. But a generative AI version of Siri offers the promise of a true intelligent assistant that can provide everything from proactive tips to improved answers to those random questions that pop into your head throughout the day.
Gurman from Bloomberg it also says that Apple’s AI features, called Apple Intelligence, will also affect a number of other apps, including Messages, Notes and Safari.
The story continues
Exactly how Apple will push a smarter Siri is still an open question. According to reports from Bloomberg, wall street newspaperIt is The New York TimesApple has held negotiations with OpenAI to license its GPT software and separate negotiations with Google (GOOG, Google) to license your Gemini software.
A partnership with either company can be complicated. OpenAI already works closely with Microsoft (MSFT), which is working to differentiate its PC business from Apple by boasting about how some Windows 11 features are powered by GPT-4o. Meanwhile, Google uses its Gemini AI model in its Android smartphones, which compete directly with Apple’s iPhone. Google is also working with Samsung to provide AI software for the company’s Galaxy line of phones.
It will also be interesting to see whether consumers or Wall Street will become more excited about Apple’s AI launch. Investors and analysts have been hoping that Apple will come up with some kind of response to the generative explosion of AI, but so far consumer use cases have been relatively limited.
If Apple releases some well-designed features, consumers are unlikely to drop everything and buy a new iPhone in September when the company launches its newest phones. Instead, most consumers will likely wait until they see some sort of hardware upgrade they’ve been waiting for, or until their current phone becomes unbearably slow, before purchasing a new device.
As for iPadOS and macOS, Apple is expected to implement the same AI features it adds to iOS on those operating systems as well. In general, I expect Apple to be quite judicious in its AI moves. The company is deeply in tune with how consumers perceive its products, and after the setback that competitors like Google and Microsoft have seen with their own AI stumbles, it’s hard to imagine Apple announcing something it isn’t completely confident in.
Outside of AI, Apple is also expected to launch Rich Communication Services, or RCS, for the iPhone. This means users will finally be able to send high-quality images and videos to their Android friends. RCS is also more secure than the SMS standard that Apple currently uses for texting from iPhone to Android.
Gurman also says that Apple will finally let people arrange app icons on the iPhone’s home screen however they want, rather than being stuck with the traditional grid layout.
There are likely to be many more announcements from the big show, and Yahoo Finance will be there live, bringing you the latest news as it breaks.
Subscribe to the Yahoo Finance Tech newsletter. (Yahoo Finance)
Email Daniel Howley at dhowley@yahoofinance.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DanielHowley.
Click here for the latest technology news that will impact the stock market.
Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance