After the criticisms against Apple for lesser innovations, Tim Cook in his latest interview for the Wall Street Journal argues that it is perfectly fine to be late in the industry but to be the best.
iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro are confirmed to be released on Friday, September 20 along with various other Apple products like Airpods and Apple Watches, that are built for Apple Intelligence, Apple’s very own artificial intelligence with other improved features. But it is criticized for being slow to bring innovative AI whereas other brands already provide these features. Apple Intelligence claims to provide helpful assistance with personal preferences without compromising user privacy.
Tim Cook, CEO of Apple Inc. in the latest interview with Ben Cohen for the Wall Street Journal said four words on the company’s AI strategy, “Not first, but best.” He meant that Apple shouldn’t be the first to bring AI, but be the best in the industry. This has been the philosophy of the company’s past, present, and future. Cook said that the top priority of the company is delivering great products that enrich people’s lives.
The CEO said that sometimes you can be the first and the best, but when needed to choose between the two, the answer would be the best always. Cook also mentions that AI has changed his life by giving an example of summarizing emails from customers in the morning.
Cook answered that Apple Intelligence can be put into the same pantheon of innovative breakthroughs as the iPod’s Click Wheel and iPhone’s touch interface for the question of how much AI can change the lives of Apple customers.
Popular companies like OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft have already launched AI products that are user-friendly and with great features. A beta test on Apple’s AI has already made clear that the features fall below other AI products.
But Apple Intelligence can offer something that these popular AI products cannot do, change perceptions. Apple Intelligence can change the perception of AI, especially for everyday tasks and ordinary life suitable for a large audience around the world.
Apple Intelligence is made to integrate with everyday life, normalizing AI and making it less complex. Even though a huge population uses AI, there is a moral factor clinging to it that reduces its usage. Many people are still dissatisfied and doubt the credibility of it.
Integrating AI into our everyday lives for doing tasks that focus on individuals with personal data rather than training data can take AI to the next level. The tagline for Apple Intelligence is “AI for the rest of us”, denoting all these.
Just like how the Mac and the graphical user interface (GUI) made computers personalized and user-friendly, creating a standard for computer interfaces, Apple Intelligence can also change the generative AI to a much more personalized and acceptable one.
Cook believes that Apple’s success is a slow process and does not occur overnight. Every product that Apple ever released improved in technology gradually and gained popularity taking enough time. He believes Apple Intelligence will also become a breakthrough innovation and strive to be the best with time.
Tim Cook took an example from the popularity of iPods, iPhones, and AirPods which were all looked at with skepticism in the initial phase. He also added a comment on the latest Vision Pro to become a slow success and is now an early-adopter product. He admits that it is quite costly at the moment and is a very expensive way to watch movies. It is not a mass-market product but Cook is excited about its reception.
