Will Apple Save AI Unveiling for the iPhone 16?

When will Apple make its big artificial intelligence (AI) reveal?

The tech giant is holding its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June. Still, analysts at the European bank Bernstein Société Générale reportedly believe that Apple will wait until September when it launches the iPhone 16.

“We expect most AI features to be unveiled with the iPhone in September, as opposed to at WWDC, consistent with other key software features like Dynamic Island, Siri, and Facetime, all of which were introduced at the time of phone launch,” said Bernstein’s Toni Sacconaghi and Daniel Zhu in a note Thursday (April 18), cited in a report by Seeking Alpha. 

“We see the timeline for AI features such as a multi-modal Siri and an AI wellness coach as less clear,” the note added.

The analysts project that the latest iteration of the iPhone will — at the very least — offer features along the same lines as the latest smartphone models from Google and Samsung, and said the company could also integrate AI into apps such as Apple Music, Pages and Keynote.

“While Apple is developing its own LLM, code-named Ajax, the company is also in talks with potential partners including Google, OpenAI and Baidu about using external LLM,” Zhu and Sacconaghi wrote.

At the yearly shareholder meeting in February, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced that the company would soon be providing more details about its strategy for using generative AI. He added that he recognizes the vast potential of generative AI for breakthroughs and expressed confidence that this would lead to transformative advancements for users.

“Every Mac that is powered by Apple silicon is an extraordinarily capable AI machine. In fact, there’s no better computer for AI on the market today,” Cook said.

Weeks later, Bloomberg News reported that Apple was in talks to add Google’s AI engine to the iPhone, a move that would rock the artificial intelligence space.

“Apple’s largest moat, the App Store and Apple Services and their nearly 2 billion loyal and affluent customers, will lead to them investing in AI for developer tools for app development, app content, and a category that’s eluded Apple forever, search,” Michael Jaconi, CEO of the AI marketing tech company Button, told PYMNTS a few days later. “Apple’s $18 billion paycheck from Google is great, but no one monetizes AI search today, really, so why not own that future when so much of the current search market already starts with you.”