Apple is reportedly set to make a significant move at its upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on June 9th. The company plans to open up the powerful large language models (LLMs) that drive its Apple Intelligence AI features to third-party developers.
Until now, developers have had limited access to Apple Intelligence, mainly utilizing existing AI Writing Tools for summaries and rewrites, or integrating the Image Playground generator. However, the upcoming software development kit (SDK) is expected to provide direct access to Apple’s on-device AI models. This approach mirrors that of competitors, such as Google’s anticipated Gemini Nano AI APIs, aiming to cultivate a more dynamic ecosystem around Apple’s AI capabilities.
It’s important to note that initial access will be limited to these smaller, on-device models. The more advanced, cloud-based AI models will remain exclusive to Apple for the time being. This decision likely prioritizes user privacy and faster local processing, even if it means less raw computational power compared to cloud-dependent solutions.
This strategic move is seen as a direct response to rapid advancements from rivals like OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic. While Apple has made strides in internal AI development, the public rollout of Apple Intelligence has faced some challenges, with certain features encountering initial hiccups and struggling to gain widespread adoption. By empowering developers to build directly on its AI models, Apple hopes to replicate the early success of the App Store.
This could trigger a wave of new, innovative, and potentially exclusive AI-powered experiences across its platforms. Such a development would not only enhance the appeal of Apple Intelligence for users but also offer financial benefits through increased app engagement and potential subscription revenues, especially as the App Store faces growing regulatory pressure. Furthermore, the rumored overhaul of iOS, macOS, and iPadOS, aiming for a unified experience akin to Vision Pro, is also expected to be a key highlight of WWDC.
(via Bloomberg)
