Apple Reportedly Developing AI Chatbot Codenamed “Apple GPT”

Apple is said to be in the process of developing an AI chatbot internally, according to a recent report by Bloomberg. While the Cupertino-based company has yet to make an official statement regarding this project, engineers within Apple have reportedly given it the name, “Apple GPT.” This generative AI chatbot could potentially compete with similar offerings from tech giants such as OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, and Meta.

Although Apple has not disclosed any concrete plans for a public release of this technology, the development of an AI chatbot underscores the importance Apple is placing on advancements in artificial intelligence. Notably, Apple typically prefers to use the term “machine learning” rather than “artificial intelligence,” which is more commonly used in academic circles.

Bloomberg’s report highlights that the chatbot employs its own large language model (LLM) framework called “Ajax,” which runs on Google Cloud and is built using Google JAX—an accelerated machine learning research framework. Multiple teams within Apple are said to be working on the project, with particular attention being paid to potential privacy implications.

Interestingly, while other tech giants have quickly launched their own AI products to both businesses and the general public, Apple has remained relatively silent in this area. In fact, the company has restricted employees from using ChatGPT over fear of data leaks, further suggesting that Apple is taking a cautious approach to AI chatbot development.

The internal deployment of the chatbot, powered by the Ajax framework, was initially paused due to security concerns surrounding generative AI. However, access to the chatbot has gradually been expanded to more Apple employees, albeit with special approval required. It is worth noting that any output generated by the chatbot cannot be directly utilized for customer-facing feature development, as stated in the Bloomberg report.

Apple’s internal AI foundation, Ajax, was created last year to streamline machine learning development within the company. Leveraging Ajax, Apple aims to build large language models and establish the groundwork for its internal ChatGPT-style tool.

The report concludes by mentioning that some Apple employees speculate the company may make a significant AI-related announcement next year, indicating that Apple’s AI endeavors are progressing and could potentially lead to exciting developments in the near future. As Apple continues to explore AI technologies, the industry eagerly awaits official updates and potential public releases from the tech giant.