In a move that surprised absolutely no one except perhaps those living under a rock without access to a weather app, Apple has finally leapt into the artificial intelligence race with the gusto of a student turning in their homework five minutes before the deadline. At its WWDC 2024 keynote, Apple unveiled a suite of AI features it is calling “Apple Intelligence,” an ambitious branding choice that proves executives still think slapping “Apple” on a thing is the tech equivalent of fairy dust.
Apple Intelligence will be integrated into iOS 18, iPadOS 18 and macOS Sequoia, which means users can look forward to an AI-infused experience across their Apple devices, provided those devices are newer than a loaf of bread. The AI system promises to perform tasks like rewriting emails, summarizing notifications and helping your calendar remind you that your life is slightly more chaotic than you thought. This effort will be partly powered by on-device processing for privacy and partly via secure cloud systems, which Apple very much wants you to know are private, encrypted and nothing like the other clouds where your secrets go to leak.
Among the more uplifting revelations was the announcement that Siri is undergoing the AI glow-up we’ve all been waiting for since 2011. Armed with contextual awareness and the ability to understand what you meant even when you cannot remember what day it is, Siri is on track to sound slightly more like a helpful assistant and less like the voice interface equivalent of shouting into a well.
In a moment of delightful tech-world cross-pollination, Apple is also integrating ChatGPT into Siri and system-wide across its platforms. This means that when Siri needs help with a query, it will raise a polite digital eyebrow and consult OpenAI’s chatbot, with user approval of course. Apple says this integration prioritizes privacy and transparency, which is code for “please do not cancel us over this.”
“We’re thrilled to introduce a new chapter in Apple innovation. Apple Intelligence will transform what users can do with our products,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook, presumably resisting the urge to call it magical, though just barely.
Developers are getting the toys early, with betas rolling out now ahead of full public releases this fall, assuming of course everything works as advertised and the AI does not decide to become sentient and throw your calendar into chaos.
Apple may be late to the party, but it certainly arrived well-dressed and clutching a thesaurus.