NAIROBI, Kenya- As Apple grapples with slumping iPhone sales, the tech giant is betting big on AI to reinvigorate its flagship product.
On Monday, Apple unveiled the iPhone 16, featuring a new external camera button—an indicator of the significant AI-driven upgrades under the hood.
But with competitors like Samsung and Google already integrating generative AI into their devices, Apple is playing catch-up in a fiercely competitive market.
Apple CEO Tim Cook took to the stage at the company’s “Glowtime” event to highlight how the iPhone 16 is designed to “push the boundaries of what a smartphone can do,” with AI at its core.
The phone comes equipped with longer battery life, enhanced privacy features, and Apple’s most powerful chips to date. One of the standout new features is “Apple Intelligence,” a suite of tools designed to integrate AI into users’ daily experiences.
Among these tools are capabilities for writing, creating personalized emojis, and even incorporating OpenAI’s ChatGPT into Siri, enabling the voice assistant to handle more advanced queries and text generation tasks.
However, these AI features won’t be immediately available—they’re set to roll out on operating systems starting in October, first in the U.S. and reaching the U.K. by December.
Apple’s move to infuse AI into its iPhone lineup comes at a time when the company’s most critical product has seen a sales dip.
Over the nine months ending in June 2024, iPhone sales slipped by 1pc compared to the same period last year.
With the iPhone 16 priced from $799, Apple hopes these AI features will justify an upgrade for loyal users.
Apple’s slow entry into AI-powered smartphones has raised eyebrows. Rivals like Google and Samsung have already integrated generative AI features for photo editing, translation, and web browsing.
Huawei is pushing the envelope even further, rolling out innovative folding smartphones like the Mate XT, which reportedly saw over three million pre-orders on launch day.
Apple’s new iPhone 16, with its external camera button that some dismiss as a “glorified shutter button,” may seem like a modest upgrade at first glance.
Despite these upgrades, Apple has been slower to the AI party than its competitors, a reality that’s putting pressure on the company to deliver flawless execution.
According to Gartner analyst Annette Zimmermann, rolling out AI-ready smartphones later than rivals makes it “critical” for Apple to avoid missteps. Releasing the features before they’re fully polished could harm the company’s reputation, she warned.
In addition to the iPhone 16, Apple announced updates to its AirPods and Apple Watch, making them smarter and more attuned to users’ needs.
The Pro version of AirPods now doubles as a “clinical-grade” personal hearing aid for users with mild to moderate hearing loss—a feature Apple expects to receive regulatory approval for soon.
These updates reflect Apple’s continued commitment to building an ecosystem of interconnected devices, all powered by the company’s AI and machine learning advancements.
With pre-orders for the iPhone 16 starting in September, Apple hopes its latest suite of AI-driven upgrades will turn the tide and reinvigorate sales, particularly as consumers increasingly expect cutting-edge AI features in their tech.
