- Apple's WWDC kicks off on June 10th, and fans are eagerly awaiting news about the company's generative AI plans.
- Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI have all delivered impressive AI demonstrations in recent weeks.
- Analysts weighed in on what else Apple needs to do at WWDC to keep investors happy.
Apple has a challenge to make up for at its highly anticipated annual Worldwide Developers Conference in June.
Major technology companies such as OpenAI, Microsoft, and Google have held events over the past three weeks where artificial intelligence has been a major topic on the agenda, and they have also been showcasing high-profile new advancements in their technologies. Not only that, but the companies have also been showcasing their products for some time now, such as OpenAI's ChatGPT chatbot, which was released in November 2022.
That's why Apple's lack of any big announcements about generative AI so far is especially conspicuous — in fact, analysts told Business Insider that the tech giant will likely have to talk about AI at WWDC if it wants to keep investors happy.
WWDC, which Wedbush Securities Managing Director Dan Ives called “Apple's most anticipated event in a decade,” kicks off on June 10 at Apple Park in Cupertino, California, and will last for four days. One of the big announcements at WWDC 2023 was the Apple Vision Pro headset.
The conference came on the heels of Apple's “Let Loose” event on May 7, where the company announced new versions of the iPad Pro, iPad Air, and compatible accessories but didn't mention its AI plans. But one big sign that there might be announcements at WWDC was the reveal of the M4 chip, which Apple described as a “very powerful chip for AI.”
CEO Tim Cook also made vague comments about Apple's AI strategy during the company's earnings call on May 2, when he spoke of “huge opportunities across our products.” Generative AI And he promised that Apple is “well positioned to enter this space,” leaving investors hungry for more details.
“Investors will likely view the generative AI announcement as positive,” said William Kerwin, a technology analyst at Morningstar, which has a two-star rating on the stock and estimates a fair value of $170.
One option for Apple could be to partner with another company. Gene Munster, managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management, told BI that Apple is “so far behind” that he hopes a partnership with OpenAI could help it close the gap on competitors. Bloomberg reported last month that the two companies are discussing a possible business partnership that could bring OpenAI's technology to the iPhone. Apple is also in talks with Google to license its Gemini chatbot, Bloomberg reported.
Munster also told BI that he expects a major upgrade to Siri will result in a more useful, conversational voice assistant powered by AI.
While Apple may be late in announcing its plans, analysts say the company would still be a powerful force in the AI arms race if it were to announce anything at all.
“Apple doesn't need to lead the way, but it can't afford to sit on the sidelines when it comes to AI,” Ives told BI, who rates Apple shares an “outperform” and has a $275 price target.
Deepwater's Munster said the company's current product lineup could motivate consumers to use Apple products over competitors' products, noting that the “seamless” continuity of devices and privacy is an advantage for the company in the fight to become a top AI player.
“Apple's biggest strength is its sheer number of devices and passionate, engaged users,” Morningstar's Kerwin told BI. “If a new generation of AI is announced, we expect it to garner huge support upon release.”
