Image created using Midjourney with this prompt: a huge crowd of people at wwdc 2024, each with an iphone in their hand, all excited to hear what tim cook has to say about AI features in iOS 18. art reminiscent of the apple 1984 tv commercial.

You can’t discuss the future of generative AI copilots and assistants until Apple makes its plans clear. Siri is terrible, but AI could make it amazing. How? You willingly give your PII and PHI to Apple through the apps in their ecosystem and the sensors on their devices. Apple has enough data (that it keeps private for you) to create an exceptional AI assistant, and they are highly motivated to do so.

Apple (AAPL) caters to the 1%; its customers are the wealthiest smartphone owners. With its unique combo of data and high-roller demographics, Apple’s got the perfect recipe to create a “next level” AI assistant. Tim Cook (Apple’s CEO) has said the company is “all in” on AI. Will Apple put its AI where its mouth is? Things look promising.

New reports say Apple has acquired the French startup Datakalab, presumably to bolster its on-device AI capabilities. Datakalab is a specialist in developing low-power, efficient deep-learning algorithms that can run directly on devices like smartphones, without relying on cloud-based processing. This aligns with Apple’s focus on user privacy and on-device AI, as it will reduce the need to send data to the cloud. Before the acquisition, Datakalab had worked on projects like analyzing facial expressions and detecting whether people were wearing masks in public spaces. This computer vision technology could also contribute to Apple’s products like Photos and Face ID.

Apple’s WWDC is scheduled for June 10-14. I’m sure iOS 18’s AI capabilities will be front and center. Until then, rumors will have to do.

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