Smartphone innovation has slowed significantly over the past few years. Long gone are the days when each new generation of phone offered exciting features that had consumers waiting outside an Apple store.
But thanks to AI, that may be changing — or at least, smartphone makers hope.
Yes, we are entering a new phase in smartphone sales. Get ready for the great AI smartphone wars.
To be fair, smartphone manufacturers have been adding AI and machine learning features to their devices for years now for everything from improved photo quality to intelligent notifications, but generative AI technology promises a whole new set of innovations, from modern photo editing tools and content summarization to live translation and transcription features — and, of course, smarter digital assistants.
Google began its AI efforts last year with the inclusion of AI features in its Pixel 8 series of phones, Samsung followed suit earlier this year with its Galaxy AI platform, and now Apple is preparing to enter the fray with Apple Intelligence, due for release later this fall.
Not to be outdone, Samsung and Google are also preparing major product events of their own in the coming weeks, with even more AI news expected to be announced.
Samsung is set to hold its Galaxy Unpacked event in Paris, France on July 10, where it will unveil its next-generation foldable phone series, the Galaxy Flip and Galaxy Fold, while Google will hold its Made by Google keynote in Mountain View, California on August 13, where it's likely to unveil its latest Pixel smartphones.
The driving force behind all of this is that AI will bring exciting new features to smartphones that weren't possible before. It also means that if your phone doesn't support AI features, you'll have to pay extra to get those features.
The battle for your attention and your wallet
Google and Samsung have launched the AI smartphone battle, but Apple's brilliant response has made generative AI seem like a much more accessible, consumer-friendly technology.
The iPhone maker unveiled its plans for Apple Intelligence at its WWDC event in June, giving developers and fans a glimpse at how the software will work across its Photos, Messages, Mail and Siri assistants. The company said that you'll be able to do things like ask Siri to show you specific photos from the Photos app. So if you want to see pictures of your trip to New York with your friend Susan, you can ask Siri to show you photos of Susan in New York, and Siri will bring them up.
Additionally, Apple will integrate OpenAI's ChatGPT into its products to give users access to the chatbot. Users will need to give web search permission every time they use ChatGPT, the company said, and will be able to distinguish between when they are using Siri and when they are using ChatGPT.
Apple also went to great lengths to explain how it plans to protect user privacy when using Apple Intelligence's online features, saying that it won't share any data with OpenAI, nor will it store any private data derived from users' interactions with Apple Intelligence.
Samsung will next hold its Unpacked event, where it will show off all-new generative AI options for its phones, according to its latest ad campaign. So far, the company has mostly shown that the Galaxy AI can enable some advanced photo editing features and translation services, but it will be interesting to see what Apple's announcements match up to.
Google, which is providing some of its AI know-how to Samsung, is in a similar situation: It launched a generative AI-powered smartphone with photo- and video-editing capabilities well before Apple, but its software felt scattered compared with the comprehensive services Apple plans to offer.
Now, as the company prepares to launch its next Pixel smartphones, it's specifically positioning AI as a key aspect of its smartphones' capabilities. Google is using the Pixel series as a blueprint for how its Android smartphone partners can innovate with its various software services. Part of that is meant to prove to customers that its generative AI capabilities can rival Apple Intelligence.
The three companies are expected to heavily promote their generative AI platforms throughout the fall and into the end of the year, hoping to prove they're a better option for what they hope will be the next big paradigm shift in smartphones.
Ultimately, the choice is yours and mine.
Contact Daniel Howley at dhowley@yahoofinance.com. Follow him on Twitter. Daniel Howley.
Click here for the latest technology news impacting the stock market.
Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance
