At WWDC 2024, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced a partnership with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT into iPhones, iPads, and Macs, enhancing Siri and writing tools. Apple’s deal with OpenAI is non-exclusive, with potential partnerships with Google and Anthropic up ahead, allowing users to choose their preferred AI chatbot.
Apple and OpenAI Announce Integration of ChatGPT Across Apple Devices
At the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2024, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced a partnership with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT into iPhones, iPads, and Macs, without revealing financial terms. According to a report by Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple is not paying OpenAI but sees value in promoting its technology.
The ChatGPT integration aims to enhance Siri and writing tools on Apple devices, potentially increasing user engagement and device upgrades. Siri will use on-device AI capabilities to answer user queries but will ask users to send queries to ChatGPT when a question falls outside the purview of its abilities.
While Apple users across iPhones, iPads, and Macs will not be required to make an account with OpenAI to access ChatGPT on their device, they will be free to log in and access premium features offered by the ChatGPT Plus subscription service.
In addition to in-house Apple Intelligence-powered features on the iPhone, iPad, and Mac, the Apple x OpenAI partnership allows the Cupertino-based iPhone maker to offer devices with an advanced chatbot, while the AI lab might incur costs due to increased use on Microsoft’s Azure cloud. If OpenAI is neither getting paid by Apple nor charging users to access ChatGPT on Apple devices, it could be planning to generate revenue by converting users to paid subscriptions.
More AI partnerships for Apple
According to the report, Apple’s deal with OpenAI is non-exclusive, and it is also considering partnerships with Google and Anthropic to add their respective AI chatbots to its device. If such partnerships get a green flag, Apple users might find the option to switch the default AI chatbot on their devices. This could work similarly to how you can choose the default search engine in the Safari browser.
It is possible that having access to integrated chatbots would push Apple users to spend money on buying premium plans for these conversational chatbots. These AI companies could also make money by monetising results in chatbots on Apple platforms. The report suggests that Apple wants to generate revenue from AI by sharing profits with these AI partners.
Source: Apple is reportedly not paying OpenAI for ChatGPT integration, so who’s making money and
