Jeff Pu, an analyst responsible for Apple's supply chain at Hong Kong investment company Haitong International Securities, said Apple plans to start applying artificial intelligence generation technology to iPhones and iPads as early as the end of 2024. Pu said in a research note on Wednesday that his survey of the supply chain shows that Apple is likely to manufacture hundreds of artificial intelligence servers in 2023, followed by a significant increase next year.
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He believes Apple will combine cloud-based AI with so-called "edge AI," which involves more device data processing. He added that rolling out generative AI will require patience as Apple considers how to use and process personal data in a way consistent with its customer privacy commitments.
If it can be achieved within the time frame of the end of 2024, it means that Apple can launch generative artificial intelligence features starting with iOS18 and iPadOS18, but it remains to be seen how Apple uses this technology. The Information reported last month that Apple plans to add large language models to Siri to allow users to automate complex tasks, a feature that will be more deeply integrated with the Shortcuts app. According to reports, this feature is expected to be released in next year’s iPhone software update, so it may become part of iOS 18.
In August, supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said Apple's AI-generating technology "clearly lags behind competitors," so it's unclear whether the end-2024 time frame is realistic. It's possible that the technology won't be ready until 2025 and beyond.
Last year, OpenAI made generative AI popular with the release of ChatGPT, a chatbot that can answer questions and other prompts. Earlier this year, Google and Microsoft released similar chatbots, and more and more companies are rushing to enter this field. These chatbots are trained with large language models to respond like humans.
In July, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that Apple was internally testing a "ChatGPT-like" chatbot nicknamed "Apple GPT," but he said the company had not yet "developed a clear strategy" for releasing generative AI tools to the public.
Apple has publicly confirmed its interest in generative AI, mentioning the technology in job postings on its website in recent months.
"We've been working on generative AI for years and done a lot of research," Apple CEO Tim Cook said in an interview with Forbes last month. "We're going to be really thoughtful about it and think deeply about it because we're fully aware that it can have bad uses and issues around bias and nonsense."