Apple’s Deal With OpenAI Believed to be Temporary While Working on its Own Chatbot

Apple’s partnership with OpenAI, which is reported to leverage the latter’s generative AI capabilities for Siri, may only be in place for a short time. It’s believed that Apple will utilize its partnership with OpenAI as it continues the development of its in-house chatbot.

Last month, Bloomberg reported that Apple and OpenAI were securing a deal. As part of the partnership, Apple may be investing in using ChatGPT functionality across iOS 18. However, Dag Kittlaus, co-founder of Siri, believes this partnership may be temporary. Kittlaus ran the Siri business alongside  Tom Gruber, and Adam Cheyer until the technology was acquired by Apple in 2010.

As first reported by 9to5Mac, Kittlaus spoke with Bloomberg to discuss the matter of Apple’s approach to AI. During the conversation, Kittlaus reflects on the current state of Siri and what may be deemed likely for the future. “[Apple is] infusing its Siri digital assistant with AI. But the company’s own chatbot isn’t yet up to snuff,” he said.

“The OpenAI partnership is likely a “short- to medium-term relationship” for Apple, said Dag Kittlaus, a tech veteran who co-founded and ran the Siri business before it was acquired by Apple. “But you can bet that they will be working hard building out their own competencies here.”

We’ll likely hear more about Apple’s short-term plans for AI during its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) keynote next week. On June 10th, Apple is set to open up a week-long event, mostly dedicated to developers. However, its opening keynote is always worth tuning in for as new hardware and software are typically outlined. This likely includes iOS 18, which is expected to be released later this year.

Apple hasn’t publically announced its partnership with OpenAI. Unlike Microsoft Build, in which CEO Satya Nadella brought OpenAI’s Sam Altman on stage, further solidifying its investment in AI, it’s unlike Apple will do the same.

Reports claim that Apple is developing its own unannounced chatbot. It’s been claimed that it is referenced as ‘Apple GPT’ and may already be used internally. While unconfirmed by the Cupertino company, it’s believed that Apple GPT may be able to run locally on devices and carry out local processing such as summarizing text on an iPhone. However, when Apple GPT will be available for public use is anyone’s guess at this time.