Apple x Meta AI Chatbot on iPhone is Not Happening: Report

Apple so far has integrated OpenAI’s ChatGPT into the iPhone in iOS 18, with plans to bring other AI chatbots on board. Now, according to Bloomberg, Apple had rejected the idea of putting Meta’s AI chatbot on the iPhone months ago, citing unnamed sources.

This report comes out after the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that Apple was contemplating a Meta partnership. Looks like someone from Apple wanted to nix that story immediately.

Both Apple and the Facebook parent company held talks in March, described as brief and did not proceed into formal discussions, say sources. Apple now apparently has no plans to integrate Meta’s Llama chatbot into the iPhone, instead choosing ChatGPT and plans for Google’s Gemini in the future.

Sources claim that Apple opted against pursuing formal discussions with Meta partly due to concerns over the social media company’s privacy practices. Apple has a history of criticizing Meta’s technology, and integrating Llama would have marked a significant shift in its stance.

Apple also considers ChatGPT to be a superior AI chatbot option. Google, already a partner in Apple’s Safari web browser, makes a future deal with Gemini a natural extension of their existing relationship.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday that the two companies had been in talks regarding an AI partnership, but today’s Bloomberg report looks to clearly pour cold water on this development. Apple clearly does not want to go into bed with Meta.

Apple is also in discussions with AI startup Anthropic about potentially adding its chatbot to the roster, the sources noted. Apple Intelligence will begin rolling out later this year with new operating systems for the iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

Only an iPhone 15 Pro device and iPad or Mac with M1 chip or newer will support Apple Intelligence. The limitation is due to the high RAM demands of on-device AI processing.