Here’s how Apple would improve your iPhone apps with AI

Apple is preparing to launch its own artificial intelligence model, Ajax. The AppleInsider site takes stock of all the expected new features.

Among the tech giants, Apple is the last to have not yet entered the field of large language models. After GPT at OpenAI, Gemini at Google or Llama at Meta, Apple should soon launch its own model, called Ajax.

This Friday, it’s the site AppleInsider which revealed new information about Ajax and how this language model will be integrated into iOS 18 in order to take advantage of features related to generative artificial intelligence. While the LLM should only be officially presented in the coming weeks, probably during WWDC next June, AppleInsider indicates that it has already learned several pieces of information both on the integration of Ajax and on its role within iOS 18:

Rather than providing short-term entertainment like with a chatbot, the company aims to improve its portfolio of existing applications with generative AI. Features like summaries, document analytics, and AI-enhanced search options will directly benefit users.

The idea would thus be to integrate the language model into applications already known from iOS 18, whether Siri, Safari, Messages or Spotlight. These applications would thus be made more efficient, without Apple needing to develop an application specifically dedicated to AI or a device designed for this use such as the Rabbit R1, the AI ​​Pin or the device project of OpenAI designed with Jony Ive.

Integration of AI into the main functions of the iPhone

For example, iOS 18 could allow users to view summaries of web pages they visit in Safari with a new option called “smart navigation“. The same goes for Siri who would be able to summarize your latest message exchanges received in the Messages application. These summary functionalities would also be generated directly by the smartphone, without requiring an Internet connection to perform the analysis in the cloud.

Spotlight should also benefit from generative AI for searching within smartphone files. Users will be able to enter text queries to find many types of files. However, the most complex queries could this time require going through the cloud – notably Google or OpenAI services – to analyze them more effectively: “multiple investigations report that Apple is in discussions with OpenAI and Google to take advantage of their cloud-based AI technologies“.

We should learn more about Apple’s AI projects at its annual developer conference, WWDC. It will open its doors on June 10.