With so many advances in the field of generative artificial intelligence (AI) such as ChatGPT, it makes many of us wonder — is Apple joining the race? According to the tech giant’s US jobs page, it certainly looks possible. The job board includes 176 open positions across Apple’s artificial intelligence, machine learning, macOS, and iOS teams — with 43 of them posted this month alone. A closer look reveals 68 jobs related to Apple’s digital assistant Siri and 52 with iOS. Eight job postings even involve the term “generative”.
It appears that Apple intends to take a “deliberate and thoughtful” approach to generative AI, according to the company’s Q2 earnings call. On top of that, The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple is placing restrictions on the use of generative AI chatbots within the organization to protect any sensitive information. This is very much in-line with Apple’s usual modus operandi.
Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook, affectionately known as TC to Apple fans, has overseen some of the most successful products in the company’s history. This includes the iPhone and Mac. However, such success has also been coupled with products that did not reach the same heights, such as the Lisa and HomePod.
Fans of Apple may get a taste of what the company is doing with AI during WWDC 2021, beginning June 5. Whether users will be treated to a mere peek into OpenAI’s ChatGPT or Google Bard, or will get to see bigger more consumer-friendly projects, we will have to wait and see.
Overall, with so much hype surrounding artificial intelligence, it appears Apple is working hard to keep up with the trend.
