Apple Reportedly Strikes Deal With Sam Altman-Led OpenAI To Integrate ChatGPT Into iOS 18, Possibly Amid Internal Opposition

Apple Inc. AAPL has reportedly reached an agreement with OpenAI to incorporate ChatGPT into iOS 18, despite possible opposition by the company’s AI chief John Giannandrea.

What Happened: Apple had been exploring partnerships with Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Microsoft Corporation to bring their Large Language Models (LLMs) to the iPhone. A deal has now been reached with OpenAI, although the specifics of the agreement remain undisclosed, reported AppleInsider (via The Information).

The Cupertino, California-based tech giant’s potential partnership with OpenAI does not rule out the possibility of collaborating with other AI industry players. There have been rumors of Apple creating an AI App Store, with OpenAI being one of several companies that could populate such a store.

See Also: Watch Out, OpenAI: Elon Musk’s xAI Fetches $24B Valuation In Fresh Funding Round With Aim To Achieve AGI ‘Next Year’

Internal politics within Apple may have influenced this compromise. A report suggests that Giannandrea expressed his disapproval of adding another chatbot in an email in 2023. This could mean that Apple did not prioritize a server-side LLM or started too late for it to be ready.

Regardless of the specifics, if this report is accurate, it’s unlikely that Apple will introduce its own LLM to replace Siri. Instead, it might rely on server-side solutions like ChatGPT to respond to user queries, the report noted.

Subscribe to the Benzinga Tech Trends newsletter to get all the latest tech developments delivered to your inbox.

Why It Matters: Previously, Wedbush’s Dan Ives said that the partnership between Apple and OpenAI could open significant AI revenue opportunities for the Tim Cook-led company. “We would expect Apple to build out a next-level Siri technology with OpenAI that can do complex tasks for Apple users.”

Earlier this month, OpenAI launched its ChatGPT app for Macs, despite receiving a $13 billion investment from Microsoft. The launch came on the heels of the startup’s introduction of GPT-4o, a more efficient and cost-effective version of its AI model, GPT-4.

Meanwhile according to tech analyst Mark Gurman, despite being a late entrant in the AI space, Apple has the potential to become the biggest AI player overnight. Apple is expected to unveil its AI strategy at the WWDC keynote on June 10, where more details about the OpenAI deal and its implications for iOS 18 are likely to be revealed.

Photo courtesy: Shutterstock

Check out more of Benzinga’s Consumer Tech coverage by following this link.

Read Next: Economist Paul Krugman Says Degradation Of Google And Other Search Engines Are Making His Job Difficult: ‘And AI Is Worse Than Useless’

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.