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Michael Hunter, an Atlanta-based real estate marketing expert and Apple (AAPL+0.11%) power user, watches Apple’s new Apple Intelligence feature evolve from promising to problematic. I’ve seen it. A month after the initial release of iOS 18.1 through its developer account, Hunter was impressed with the system’s enhanced Siri functionality and responsiveness.
CEO says audience will be the main beneficiary of AI in the media industry
But after updating to the iOS 18.2 beta last week, his enthusiasm waned.
“This has to be the buggy deployment Apple has ever done,” said Hunter, who uses Siri on a collection of 20 Apple devices.
The latest version has proven to be unstable, with voice responses often defaulting to screen text, making basic Siri functionality unreliable. “They took Siri away from me and ruined my everyday use,” Hunter said.
Apple this week began rolling out intelligence features to regular iPhone users, marking its biggest push yet into consumer AI as it competes with OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s (GOOGL+1.67%) Gemini. It shows. The update represents a pivotal moment for Apple, which is betting that by integrating AI deeper into iOS while maintaining a privacy-first approach, it can catch up to competitors that started early in the AI race. are.
But so far, the response has been lukewarm, with users facing long waiting lists and finally finding familiar features after two years of similar features from competitors. And it raises the question of whether Apple’s signature late but sophisticated foray into AI can still excite consumers.
Potential users who want to try Apple Intelligence (only those who own an iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 16) find themselves in the unusual situation of waiting in line for a software update. After downloading iOS 18.1, users will have to flip a switch in Settings to join a waiting list that lasts several hours.
The reason for the delay is not entirely clear. Some Apple watchers say this could be because each user would need to enroll in private cloud computing (where advanced AI requests are processed on privacy-focused hardware), or simply because Apple intended to roll out these beta features. I suspect that this is because we are making progress. Either way, the wait adds more friction to a release that is already testing users’ patience.
Once you make it through the waiting list, Apple Intelligence adds several AI-powered features to your iPhone’s daily tasks. Messages and notifications now have a quick AI-powered summary on your lock screen. The Photos app now has an eraser tool that lets you remove unwanted objects and automatically fill in the background.
The new Writing Assistant can proofread and restyle your text in a variety of tones, from friendly to professional. Siri has also been upgraded to better understand natural and messy speech patterns, and can handle mid-sentence corrections if you stumble over a word.
But while sophisticated, these features will emerge as familiar territory in 2024. Sources told Bloomberg that Apple’s internal research found that ChatGPT is 25% more accurate and able to answer 30% more questions than Siri. Bloomberg reports that some within Apple believe its generative AI technology is more than two years behind industry leaders, and the company is known for creating trends rather than following them. The company freely admits this.
Apple executives insist that this measured pace is intentional.
“This is a process in which this technology is being rolled out over many years, let’s be honest, decades, so we’re going to do this responsibly,” says Apple’s Software Responsibility. CEO Craig Federighi told the Wall Street Journal.
This is a familiar strategy for Apple. They will arrive late but with more sophistication, emphasizing privacy and integration over speed to market. But in the AI race, where competitors are releasing new features every week, this slow-and-steady approach faces unprecedented pressure to prove itself.
Apple’s AI push comes at a critical time for iPhone sales. According to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple has cut orders for about 10 million standard iPhones through early 2025, despite positioning the iPhone 15 Pro as the company’s first AI-enabled device. It is said that there is Although premium models remain unaffected, Kuo specifically doesn’t expect Apple’s new AI features to boost overall iPhone sales, and the company’s late foray into consumer AI makes it necessary. This suggests that the market may not be revitalized.
Still, Wall Street remains bullish on Apple’s AI ambitions, with Wedbush Securities managing director Daniel Ives predicting the company’s valuation will reach $4 trillion by 2025. .
“Apple Intelligence is the beginning of the AI revolution at Apple,” said Ives.
With Apple scheduled to report fourth-quarter earnings on Thursday, Ives sees iOS 18.1 as just the beginning of a broader transformation that will “unravel a multi-year supercycle.” It’s estimated that 20% of the world’s population will eventually access AI through Apple devices, and Ives said the features in December’s iOS 18.2 will be key to maintaining that momentum.
But early access to these features doesn’t inspire confidence for everyone. Apple Intelligence was supposed to be a game-changer for Hunter, who doesn’t use ChatGPT or other AI tools, but it didn’t live up to his expectations.
“I thought this was going to be my real assistant,” he said. “I was expecting a little more.”
