Apple’s software chief Craig Federighi has confirmed that Apple is looking to add more external AI models other than OpenAI’s ChatGPT to work with Apple Intelligence down the line (via 9to5Mac).
In a new media interview with Justine Ezarik (iJustine), Federighi and Apple’s AI chief John Giannandrea elaborated on the company’s Apple Intelligence initiative, which incorporates AI features across the board with iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia.
During the interview, held in the Steve Jobs Theater on Monday afternoon, Federighi teased that Apple hopes to offer more AI models for users to choose from other than ChatGPT, which is set to come as a built-in option with iOS 18 and Siri for tasks that the native Apple Intelligence models can’t undertake. Federighi explicitly mentioned Google Gemini as an option that could be available on iOS 18 down the line, while also cautioning that a definitive agreement is yet to be inked with Googe.
We think ultimately people are going to have a preference perhaps for certain models that they want to use, maybe one that’s great for creative writing or one that they prefer for coding. And so we want to enable users ultimately to bring a model of their choice.
And so we may look forward to doing integrations with different models like Google Gemini in the future. I mean, nothing to announce right now, but that’s our direction.
Apple SVP of Software Engineering Craig Federighi
Federighi adds that Apple first focused on integrating ChatGPT with iOS 18 and Apple Intelligence as a whole as it is the best commercially available AI model at present. As part of its deal with OpenAI, Siri will have access to the GPT-4o model for free. Requests handled with ChatGPT through iOS 18 will not store users’ data on OpenAI’s servers.
Earlier this year, it was revealed that Apple was in talks with OpenAI, Google, and Baidu to provide chatbot-style features on iOS 18. Apple only announced its partnership with OpenAI at yesterday’s WWDC 2024 keynote, suggesting that talks with other AI providers are yet to be finalized.
