Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is reportedly developing a new rival to OpenAI’s ChatGPT via its newly formed ‘Answers’ team. Meanwhile, an iPhone 17 Pro has been sighted in San Francisco.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, in his latest "Power On” report revealed that Apple is working on a stripped-down competitor to ChatGPT to enhance user access to global knowledge. This comes despite previous dismissals by Apple’s top software and marketing executives of the need for a chatbot. The company had earlier integrated ChatGPT into Siri, its voice assistant, in partnership with OpenAI.
Apple’s new team, known as Answers, Knowledge, and Information (AKI), is exploring various in-house AI services to create a new ChatGPT-like search experience. The AKI team is led by Robby Walker, a senior director reporting to AI chief John Giannandrea.
Apple’s current AI platform, Apple Intelligence, lacks search capabilities and is primarily focused on summarizing notifications, rewriting text, generating Genmoji images, and cleaning up photos. The new initiative aims to fill this gap.
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In other news, an iPhone 17 Pro was spotted in San Francisco, indicating that the company is testing its new device in real-world conditions. The device was seen in a stealth case designed to disguise the phone’s appearance.
Apple has also reportedly lost its fourth AI researcher in a month to Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:FB). The company’s foundation models team, responsible for developing large language models for generative AI, has been experiencing an exodus of talent.
The formation of the new ‘Answers’ team and the development of a ChatGPT rival indicate Apple’s renewed focus on enhancing its AI capabilities. This comes amidst a talent drain from its AI research team to Meta Platforms.
The sighting of the iPhone 17 Pro in the wild suggests that Apple is making progress in its device development and is likely nearing the launch of the new model.
The company’s efforts to improve its AI services and continue its device innovation could potentially strengthen its position in the tech industry.
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