Apple is set to make a “major AI announcement” at WWDC, 2024 where AI is set to be an underlying focus of all the major updates to Apple’s platforms, including iOS 18 and macOS 15, Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives said today in a note seen by Supercharged.
For months, reports have suggested a heightened focus on AI within Apple. The company has reportedly been rushing to include as many AI features into iOS 18 and macOS 15 as possible, with possible integrations into Xcode, Apple Music, Siri, Messages, and Spotlight Search. Apple researchers have publicly shared some of the company’s research into AI and computer vision, offering some clues as to what could be in store.
Apple has also looked to Shutterstock, reportedly inking a deal worth over $50 million to use the media providers library to train its AI models. In the last couple of months, Apple has also reportedly approached news publishers to use their content to train the company’s generative AI models.
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Apple’s efforts in AI have resulted in the company spending millions of dollars a day at one point last year for R&D and into more a conversational version of Siri. Despite the efforts, a direct ChatGPT competitor from Apple is unlikely, with the company instead opting to implement AI into its operating systems that help users throughout their day, rather than creating content.
Alongside in-house AI models and systems, Apple is also looking to outsource some features of the upcoming updates to Google‘s Gemini language model and Chinese equivalent Badiu. The extent of a deal and partnership between the companies is unknown, but in the case of Google, a deal could be similar to an existing partnership that sees the search engine remain the default engine in Safari.
Internally, Apple is considering iOS 18 the biggest update ever to the iPhone, and rumors suggest a feature-packed release. Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman has said that iOS 18 will include redesigns across the user interface but has stopped short of saying iOS 18 will introduce a complete design overhaul that brings the operating system more in line with the design language of visionOS.
iOS 18 is also set to include new features in Apple Maps and a redesign of the home screen with new customization options, including the possibility of adding blank icons, a more free-flowing arrangement of apps, and more.
WWDC 2024 kicks off on Monday, June 10 when iOS 18, iPadOS 18, macOS 15, watchOS 11, and visionOS 2 are expected to be announced. Beta testing for all the new updates will last throughout the summer until they’re released to the public in the fall and later in the year.
