Apple appears to be reconsidering its strategy regarding artificial intelligence. After efforts to consolidate its AI teams under a single leader, the company is now making significant organizational changes. Reports from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman indicate that the previous approach was not keeping pace with the rapid advancements in AI, affecting key initiatives like Siri and various robotics projects.
In 2018, Apple brought on AI expert John Giannandrea from Google to streamline its diverse AI efforts, which included Siri, research endeavors, and even projects related to autonomous vehicles. This centralization aimed to accelerate innovation, especially as Siri was perceived to lag behind Amazon’s Alexa and Google Assistant. However, this strategy has reportedly not yielded the expected results.
According to Gurman, Apple has fallen behind competitors who have swiftly rolled out new AI features. For instance, the company’s “Apple Intelligence” initiative has seen delayed feature launches. Internally, there has been a sentiment that the unified AI structure did not perform as anticipated.
The company is now reverting to its traditional team structure, with Siri’s development returning to the software engineering division led by Craig Federighi, while robotics will join John Ternus’s hardware team. This restructuring isn’t merely a housekeeping effort; it signals that Apple recognizes its previous model wasn’t adequate in a competitive landscape. As rivals like Google, Microsoft, and Meta push their AI advancements, Apple is narrowing its focus under Giannandrea’s oversight, emphasizing foundational AI work.
The question remains whether this move is a strategic pivot or an admission of struggle. Streamlining AI into products could position Apple more effectively in the market, but it raises concerns about the company’s overall AI direction. This shift reflects Apple’s understanding that change was necessary to stay competitive in the AI arena.