AI is bound to hardware, will you pay for Apple Intelligence?

Written by: Mu Mu

Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in 2024,AI Obviously, it is the highlight that everyone is looking forward to, the 1 hour and 44 minute conference,AI That part took more than 40 minutes.

In the early morning of June 11th, Beijing time, Apple updated iOS, iPadOS, MacOS and other operating systems in the first hour of WWDC, and also updated visionOS for the first time. The rest of the surprise time was reserved for Apple's "AI gift package" - Apple Intelligence.

The core highlight of the full-process tracking of Apple Intelligence is that Siri will undergo a major upgrade and become an artificial intelligence assistant in Apple products. Through it, the capabilities of generative AI in Apple phones can be called upon, such as searching/modifying photos, summarizing information, etc.

Overall, Apple-style AI is innovative compared to itself, but compared with other AI phones, it seems to lack novelty. After all, these AI functions have either already appeared on OPPO, vivo, and Samsung phones, or can be achieved through third-party applications. Apple's "sense of revolution" is disappearing.

For consumers, Apple-style AI requires updated models to be implemented, which means that if they want to use Apple Intelligence, they have to spend a lot of money. So, can Apple-style AI with limited novelty still stimulate consumers' desire to buy?

Apple's "AI Pack" lacks novelty

Apple's artificial intelligence system was delayed for a year, and finally redefined Apple-style AI under the name of Apple Intelligence. Before that, almost all mobile phone manufacturers had already joined the artificial intelligence craze, and Apple's actions were somewhat slow.

The answer was revealed at WWDC. The AI generation model will be placed in mainstream Apple hardware such as iPhone, iPad and Mac in the form of terminals through system and hardware updates. Native applications will upgrade their functions due to the emergence of AI.

For Apple users, the most attractive thing is that AI's scheduling capabilities will help users achieve cross-App operations. With the intervention of Apple Intelligence, Siri has escaped the "artificial intelligence" sequence and become a ready-made Apple AI assistant. For example, you can directly wake up Siri with voice to find a specific picture and edit it according to your intention; you can let Siri summarize text messages, etc.

It was previously reported that the cooperation between Apple and OpenAI has also achieved substantial results, but Apple only left a small entrance for ChatGPT, through which users can choose to enable this generative AI tool and call ChatGPT's functions on demand. Apple also said: "We also plan to add support for other AI models in the future." This also makes people wonder which big model domestic users will use.

Users can choose whether to use ChatGPT

The capabilities of Apple Intelligence mainly enter the hardware through the system, becoming practical functions that did not exist in Apple hardware before. For example, Apple moved the calculator into iPadOS 18 for the first time. The AI capability enables the calculator to have the ability of "math notes". It is no longer a point-and-click calculation tool. Users can use Apple Pencil to handwrite the calculation process. The calculator panel can not only give the answer, but also present it in your handwriting, and even generate corresponding charts.

For example, a user can write a formula by hand and let the calculator give the answer. If the user changes the calculation variables, the calculation results can be updated synchronously, and even function graphs can be generated in real time.

iPad computer can automatically generate function graphs

It’s worth noting that these AI-powered features won’t be available on all devices.

Currently, only iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max can access Apple Intelligence. Therefore, if it is a version below these models, even if you update to iOS 18, you still cannot experience Apple-style AI. For iPad and Mac users, devices supported by M1 or higher chips are required.

However, although users of old devices cannot see Apple Intelligence, AI applications are not unique to Apple. Whether it is conversational robots or AI creation/photo editing functions, they have long been visible in the form of various apps in the Apple App Store.

This is almost the most "boring" part of Apple's WWDC: more innovation than novelty. You know, users have already seen these AI features of Apple on other phones.

Since the beginning of this year, a large number of Android phones, whether domestic mobile phone brands such as Huawei, Xiaomi, OPPO, vivo, etc., or Apple's strongest competitor Samsung, have long been labeled as "AI phones" and have implanted the capabilities of generative AI into their own mobile phone applications. One-click removal of passers-by in photos and summarizing information have become the mainstream functions of AI phones.

Compared with itself, Apple is moving towards AI; but compared with other competitors, it no longer has the first-mover advantage.

AI functions and hardware bundling test consumerswallet

After Apple released a series of AI plans, its stock price continued to rise. When the U.S. stock market opened on June 11, Apple closed up more than 7%, setting a new high; on June 12, Apple's market value soared by more than 1.5 trillion overnight.

Analysts expect that new AI features will stimulate consumers to upgrade their devices, as these tools are only available on newer models. But some analysts are skeptical. Forrester analyst Dipanjan Chatterjee said: "Perhaps improving Siri-driven smart devices can prevent some Apple users from leaving, but it is not enough to create a new group of followers."

Apple iPhone Xiaobai NavigationThe business accounts for half of the company's total sales, and AI functions are most convenient to use on mobile phones. Between the old and the new, it may be a good strategy to reduce the price of old mobile phones to attract new fans and make room for new models to consolidate old fans.

At present, Apple’s latest mobile phone model, the iPhone 15 series, is experiencing the largest price cut in history in the Chinese market. In addition to coinciding with the e-commerce festival, the iPhone 16 series will most likely be launched in the fall of this year at the same pace as in previous years.

During the 618 activities of various e-commerce platforms, all models of the iPhone 15 series were significantly reduced in price. The price of iPhone 15 dropped from 5,999 yuan to 4,599 yuan, and even below 4,500 yuan on some platforms. The price of iPhone 15 Pro Max also dropped from 9,999 yuan to below 7,500 yuan.

Some KOLs believe that compared with the AI function launched by Apple, maintaining the price of "618 may prevent the iPhone from falling in the market." And new data shows that iPhone sales have returned to the top of the Chinese market.

In the past two years, iPhone sales growth has almost stagnated, but in April this year, Apple's iPhone sales in China soared by 52%, and the growth curve is almost vertical. The sharp increase in sales is mainly the result of Apple's successive price cuts in the Chinese market.

However, can Apple's new generation of devices equipped with the latest chips to run AI functions still maintain a "friendly" price? The application of the M4 chip is the best window for judgment.

In May this year, Apple launched the latest M4 chip, which is very suitable for executing the latest AI applications, and installed it on the new iPad Pro. The price of the device has also been upgraded like its update: from the previous generation of 6799 yuan (11 inches, 128GB storage) to 8999 yuan (11 inches, 256GB storage), the 128GB gear has been cancelled, and the price has increased by 2200 yuan; and the starting price of the 13-inch has also increased from 9299 yuan in the previous generation to 11499 yuan, also an increase of 2200 yuan, an increase of 32%.

Unlike in the past, the M4 chip was not first installed in any Mac computer. Some netizens predicted that the desktop Mac that has not been updated may skip the M3 and go directly to the M4.

In a poll on whether to buy the new iPad, 68.72% of users chose the option "can't afford it", with a total of 18,233 votes.

Most people think the iPad Pro is too expensive

There are also reports that Apple iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus will use the new A18 chip and a more powerful neural engine, which can use local AI models. In addition, Apple will cancel the 128G version, and the entire series of products will start directly from 256G, and the price will also rise accordingly to 6999 yuan. According to this news, compared with iPhone 15, the 256G version is priced at 5999 yuan.

Andy Wu, an associate professor at Harvard Business School, pointed out: "The high costs of running advanced generative AI models and managing potentially misleading information will pose new challenges for Apple." More importantly, Apple needs to convince consumers why they need to pay a higher price to get these new AI features.

The article comes from the Internet:AI is bound to hardware, will you pay for Apple Intelligence?

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