Apple’s iPhone 15 launch focused heavily on AI — even though the tech giant didn’t mention it
Apple iPhone Pro A17 Pro chip.
Source: Apple Inc.
Apple spent a lot of time talking at its iPhone 15 launch event about the features of its products that use artificial intelligence, even if it didn’t mention AI by name.
The Cupertino-based tech giant touted what was under the hood of its iPhone 15 range as well as its Apple Watch Series 9, in particular the chip that powers the devices.
Apple designs its own semiconductors for both. For the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2, Apple unveiled the S9 chip. The iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max meanwhile are powered by the A17 Pro chip.
While it spoke about these chips, Apple focused on what kind of features they powered.
For example, the S9 allows requests to Apple’s voice assistant Siri to be processed on-device. This is an AI process that typically would happen in the cloud and only when your watch is connected to the internet. But as chips become more powerful, these AI processes are able to happen on the device itself.
This typically allows processes to be faster and more secure as your data isn’t being transmitted over the internet.
But instead of Apple talking about AI, it focused on the usefulness of Siri on the device.
On the Apple Watch Ultra 2, there is a feature called “double tap” which lets you control features on the device by tapping your index finger and thumb together. Again, this requires AI processing.
“Apple doesn’t like mentioning AI on conference calls or product events, which has led to speculation that the company is falling behind when it comes to capitalizing on the new paradigm,” Gene Munster, managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management, said in a note on Tuesday.
“The reality is Apple is aggressively pursuing AI.”
Apple’s A17 Pro chip in the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max is a 3 nanometer semiconductor. The nanometer figure refers to the size of each individual transistor on a chip. The smaller the transistor, the more of them can be packed onto a single semiconductor. Typically, a reduction in nanometer size can yield more powerful and efficient chips.
The iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max are the only smartphones on the market with a 3nm chip.
Apple said this can help to power features such as more accurate predictive typing and the camera technology, again a process that requires AI.
“As more applications that leverage AI emerge, phones will be tasked with powering them, a dynamic that will make phones with legacy chips feel sluggish,” Munster said. “Chips are important when it comes to AI, and Apple is leading the way in building the hardware to enable those features.”
An electric air taxi by Joby Aviation flies near the Downtown Manhattan Heliport in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., November 12, 2023.
Roselle Chen | Reuters
Air taxi maker Joby Aviation in a new lawsuit accused competitor Archer Aviation of using stolen information by a former employee to “one-up” a partnership deal with a real estate developer.
“This is corporate espionage, planned and premeditated,” Joby said in the lawsuit filed Wednesday in a California Superior Court in Santa Cruz, where the company is based.
Archer and Joby did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
The lawsuit alleges that former U.S. state and local policy lead, George Kivork, downloaded dozens of files and sent some content to his personal email two days before he resigned in July to take a job at Archer, which had recruited him.
By August, Joby said a partner that worked with Kivork said it had been approached by Archer with a “more lucrative deal.” Joby alleges that the eVTOL rival’s understanding of “highly confidential” details helped it leverage negotiations.
Joby also said the developer attempted to terminate the agreement, citing a breach of confidentiality.
Kivork refused to return the files when Joby approached him after conducting an investigation, according to the suit. The company also said Archer denied wrongdoing, and would not disclose how it learned about the terms of the agreement or provide results from an internal investigation it allegedly undertook.
The lawsuit comes during a busy period for electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) technology as companies race to gain Federal Aviation Administration certification to start flying commercially. ‘
The sector has also benefitted from President Donald Trump‘s newly minted eVTOL pilot program.
Joby argued in the complaint that it’s “imperative” to protect Joby’s work “from this type of espionage” to promote the sector’s success and ensure fair competition.
Last week, Joby said it completed its first test flight for a hybrid aircraft it’s working on with defense contractor L3Harris. This month, Amazon-backed Beta Technologies, another electric flight company, also went public on the New York Stock Exchange.
Joby shares have more than doubled over the last year, while Archer is up about 68%.
In August 2023, Archer settled a previous legal dispute with Boeing-owned Wisk Aero over the alleged theft of trade secrets. As part of the deal, Archer agreed to use Wisk as its autonomous tech partner.
A hearing is scheduled for March 20, 2026.
Joby and Archer year-to-date stock chart.
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