Apple brings ChatGPT to iPhones and Siri in AI overhaul – BBC News

Apple is set to boost its Siri voice assistant and operating systems with OpenAI’s ChatGPT as it tries to catch up in the AI ​​race.

The iPhone maker announced the Siri makeover along with a number of other new features at its annual developer show on Monday.

It’s part of a new personalized AI system – called ‘Apple Intelligence’ – that aims to give users a way to navigate Apple devices more easily.

Updates to the iPhone and Mac operating systems will enable access to ChatGPT through a partnership with developer OpenAI.

ChatGPT can also be used to power other tools, including text and content generation. The test version will be available in the fall.

Apple CEO Tim Cook said the move would take his company’s products “to new heights” as he opened the Worldwide Developers Conference at the tech giant’s headquarters in Cupertino, California.

The announcement was not welcomed by everyone. Elon Musk, the owner of Tesla and Twitter/X, threatened to ban his companies’ iPhones over “data security.”

“Apple has no idea what’s actually going on when they hand your data over to OpenAI,” Musk said on X. “They’re selling you out.”

Apple has faced pressure to introduce new AI features into its products following the rapid rise of rivals who adopted the technology.

Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight, said that while Apple’s new personal AI system should “help calm nervous investors,” its ChatGPT integration could reveal and create deeper problems for the company.

“Undoubtedly this means Apple is admitting its limitations, as ChatGPT will kick in at a point where Siri can no longer assist a user,” he told the BBC.

Apple has been largely absent from the avalanche of AI products released by tech companies in recent months.

Mr Cook told investors in 2023 that the company would approach the technology with care. Those plans were finally presented on Monday.

“Apple Intelligence” in itself is not a product or app.

It will become part of every app and Apple product that customers use – whether it’s a writing assistant that refines your message drafts or your calendar that can show you the best route to get to your next appointment.

In that sense, it’s similar to Microsoft’s AI assistant Copilot – but you don’t have to pay extra to activate it.

Siri, the voice assistant that Apple acquired in 2010, has been revamped with a new interface and chattier approach to help users navigate their devices and apps seamlessly.

Apple was keen to emphasize the security of Apple Intelligence during Monday’s keynote.

Some processing will be done on the device itself, while larger actions that require more power will be sent to the cloud, but no data will be stored there, the report said.

This is critical for customers who pay higher prices for Apple’s privacy promises.

The system “puts powerful generative models at the core of your iPhone, iPad and Mac,” said Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering.

“It uses your personal context to give you information that is most useful and relevant to you, and it protects your privacy every step of the way.”

Apple’s decision to integrate OpenAI’s ChatGPT technology was widely expected, but it’s an unusual move for a company that keeps such a close eye on its own products.

Google and Microsoft have recently come under scrutiny over mistakes their AI products have made in recent months, with the search giant rolling back a new feature in May after the incorrect answers went viral.

For years, Apple also refused to allow its customers to download apps outside the App Store because they might not be secure, and for the same reason Apple did not allow any web browser other than its own Safari.

It only changed when EU law required it.

Is it a sign of recognition that even Apple can’t compete with ChatGPT at the moment?

If so, it tells us a lot about the current strength of AI supergiant OpenAI.

The company did say it would integrate other products in the future, but didn’t name any.

Apple has announced that its mixed reality headset, the Vision Pro, will go on sale in the UK on July 12. It has been available in the US since February.

Other new features announced Monday include: