Zürcher Nachrichten - Apple plays it safe on AI despite Wall Street pressure

EUR -
AED 4.214994
AFN 81.487427
ALL 97.268928
AMD 441.228466
ANG 2.05398
AOA 1051.308202
ARS 1310.992228
AUD 1.763295
AWG 2.06589
AZN 1.956499
BAM 1.951739
BBD 2.316351
BDT 140.298077
BGN 1.955365
BHD 0.432852
BIF 3375.435415
BMD 1.147717
BND 1.474133
BOB 7.944401
BRL 6.299249
BSD 1.147248
BTN 99.145727
BWP 15.482258
BYN 3.754403
BYR 22495.251321
BZD 2.304475
CAD 1.572085
CDF 3301.981355
CHF 0.940097
CLF 0.028211
CLP 1082.595435
CNY 8.251398
CNH 8.255952
COP 4671.460298
CRC 579.095056
CUC 1.147717
CUP 30.414498
CVE 110.324324
CZK 24.814753
DJF 203.971618
DKK 7.458851
DOP 68.116707
DZD 149.483201
EGP 57.985069
ERN 17.215754
ETB 154.712558
FJD 2.581502
FKP 0.849347
GBP 0.855514
GEL 3.122301
GGP 0.849347
GHS 11.821706
GIP 0.849347
GMD 82.058829
GNF 9934.637242
GTQ 8.810591
GYD 239.928681
HKD 9.009131
HNL 30.012649
HRK 7.534422
HTG 150.456939
HUF 403.353328
IDR 18764.884454
ILS 3.997917
IMP 0.849347
INR 99.408409
IQD 1503.509144
IRR 48347.574528
ISK 143.383992
JEP 0.849347
JMD 182.410452
JOD 0.813747
JPY 166.293279
KES 148.616138
KGS 100.367919
KHR 4613.821752
KMF 490.590736
KPW 1032.903446
KRW 1577.370486
KWD 0.351683
KYD 0.956111
KZT 596.01984
LAK 24761.992024
LBP 102835.434435
LKR 344.665844
LRD 229.141481
LSL 20.566731
LTL 3.38891
LVL 0.694243
LYD 6.220543
MAD 10.511369
MDL 19.646719
MGA 5078.647292
MKD 61.520278
MMK 2409.457157
MNT 4111.573307
MOP 9.274103
MRU 45.587009
MUR 52.164045
MVR 17.6806
MWK 1992.436815
MXN 21.835641
MYR 4.877687
MZN 73.3963
NAD 20.566803
NGN 1773.448511
NIO 42.178651
NOK 11.448993
NPR 158.627937
NZD 1.903297
OMR 0.4413
PAB 1.147223
PEN 4.127766
PGK 4.730029
PHP 65.604068
PKR 325.435061
PLN 4.274499
PYG 9156.22753
QAR 4.178262
RON 5.031827
RSD 117.220885
RUB 90.097409
RWF 1635.496588
SAR 4.306557
SBD 9.588446
SCR 16.269278
SDG 689.196624
SEK 11.070298
SGD 1.474862
SHP 0.901925
SLE 25.833337
SLL 24067.053827
SOS 655.917291
SRD 44.589045
STD 23755.422685
SVC 10.038113
SYP 14922.203035
SZL 20.589644
THB 37.518756
TJS 11.529311
TMT 4.017009
TND 3.369128
TOP 2.688064
TRY 45.380548
TTD 7.778053
TWD 33.921581
TZS 3001.279312
UAH 47.831874
UGX 4131.367718
USD 1.147717
UYU 46.872878
UZS 14587.48205
VES 117.706057
VND 29957.132774
VUV 137.572569
WST 3.018068
XAF 654.594961
XAG 0.031228
XAU 0.00034
XCD 3.101762
XDR 0.814106
XOF 651.376712
XPF 119.331742
YER 278.547565
ZAR 20.692194
ZMK 10330.830329
ZMW 27.504609
ZWL 369.564375
  • CMSC

    0.0900

    22.314

    +0.4%

  • CMSD

    0.0250

    22.285

    +0.11%

  • RBGPF

    0.0000

    69.04

    0%

  • SCS

    0.0400

    10.74

    +0.37%

  • RELX

    0.0300

    53

    +0.06%

  • RIO

    -0.1400

    59.33

    -0.24%

  • GSK

    0.1300

    41.45

    +0.31%

  • NGG

    0.2700

    71.48

    +0.38%

  • BP

    0.1750

    30.4

    +0.58%

  • BTI

    0.7150

    48.215

    +1.48%

  • BCC

    0.7900

    91.02

    +0.87%

  • JRI

    0.0200

    13.13

    +0.15%

  • VOD

    0.0100

    9.85

    +0.1%

  • BCE

    -0.0600

    22.445

    -0.27%

  • RYCEF

    0.1000

    12

    +0.83%

  • AZN

    -0.1200

    73.71

    -0.16%

Apple plays it safe on AI despite Wall Street pressure
Apple plays it safe on AI despite Wall Street pressure / Photo: JUSTIN SULLIVAN - GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP

Apple plays it safe on AI despite Wall Street pressure

Apple on Monday remained on its cautious path to embracing generative AI even as rivals race ahead with the technology and Wall Street expresses doubts over its strategy.

Text size:

The pressure was on Apple not to disappoint at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) a year after the iPhone juggernaut made a promise it failed to keep -- to improve its Siri voice assistant with generative AI.

The annual WWDC is addressed to developers who build apps and tools to run on the company's products.

Despite last year's disappointment, Apple insisted on Monday it was still very much in the AI race, announcing incremental updates to its Apple Intelligence software, including the ability for app makers to directly access a device's AI capabilities.

This would allow users to engage with apps using generative AI while offline, letting them interact ChatGPT-style with a hiking app, for example, while in remote areas without a connection.

Apple CEO Tim Cook briefly mentioned that Siri's AI makeover was still under development and "needed more time to meet our high quality bar," which includes Apple's standards on privacy and data security.

"We are making progress, and we look forward to getting these features into customers' hands," he added.

For Gadjo Sevilla, senior analyst for Emarketer, "the delays to Apple's in-house AI efforts will continue to draw scrutiny."

"Especially since rivals like Google and Samsung are moving ahead by introducing new on-device AI capabilities, or partnering with AI startups like Perplexity (in Samsung's case) to provide users with AI features," he added.

The biggest announcement at the event was the renaming of Apple's operating systems so that releases better match their release year.

The next operating system will be iOS 26 and will be available across all of Apple's devices -- including the Mac, Watch and Vision Pro headset -- in the fall, in time for the likely release of the next iPhone 17.

Today, Apple's operating systems have vastly different nomenclatures across devices, including the current iOS 18 for the iPhone or macOS 15 for Mac computers.

Apple also announced that the new operating system will be the first major iOS redesign since 2013, calling the new look "Liquid Glass."

- Wall Street divided -

The relationship between Apple and app-making developers has been strained in recent years, with developers chafing at the iPhone maker's high fees for getting access to the App Store.

A marathon lawsuit by Fortnite maker Epic Games ended with Apple being ordered to allow outside payment systems to be used in the US App Store.

Adding to doubts about Apple's direction is the fact that the legendary designer behind the iPhone, Jony Ive, has joined with ChatGPT maker OpenAI to create a potential rival device for engaging with AI.

Apple also has to deal with tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump in his trade war with China, a key market for sales growth and the place where most iPhones are manufactured.

Trump has also threatened to hit Apple with tariffs if iPhone production wasn't moved to the US, a change which analysts say would be impossible given the costs and capabilities required.

Wall Street analysts remain divided on Apple's prospects, with the stock down about 17 percent since the start of the year, wiping over $600 billion from its market value and far outshone by its Big Tech rivals.

While some analysts remain optimistic about Apple's long-term AI monetization potential, others worry the company's cautious approach may prove costly in the longer term.

WWDC "was void of any major Apple Intelligence progress as Cupertino is playing it safe and close to the vest after the missteps last year," said Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities.

"We have a high level of confidence Apple can get this right, but they have a tight window to figure this out," he added.

P.E.Steiner--NZN