Apple may introduce a new Siri-like AI 'personality' for Robots

We've heard that Apple is developing a tablet home device with a robotic arm, marking Apple's official entry into the robotics market. Now, we have some details about the potential AI assistant. According to Mark Gurman's latest report, Apple is researching a human-like interface based on Generative AI that can control Apple's future tablet devices and robotic devices. This Apple AI personality will work similarly to how Siri currently works on the iPhone.

'The important part of robotics is creating a personality. While Siri is the digital assistant on Apple's current devices, the company is working on another human-like interface based on Generative AI. It can run on tablet products and other Apple robotic devices in the future' - Mark Gurman

At WWDC 2024, Apple finally kicked off its AI journey with Apple Intelligence, bringing a suite of AI features to iPhone, iPad, and Mac. We'll soon see Writing Tools, more powerful Siri, ChatGPT integration, etc. In a few weeks, we'll see these features on every Apple Intelligence-compatible iPhone. Apple seems to be going all-in on next-generation AI. So it makes sense to focus on a new robot personality that allows for more useful and natural conversations than Siri.

The robotics industry has a long way to go. Apple and other companies can do a lot. Currently, robots on the market are very expensive and do not have enough features. On top of that, there are security and privacy concerns to address. So Apple needs to catch up with its home robot project. Additionally, many of Apple's AI features will be supported by ChatGPT. So Apple has a lot of work to do before launching its own Generative AI.

Gurman added that there's a lot of promise in Apple's robotics and there's a lot of reason to be skeptical. After dismal sales of the Apple Vision Pro and the cancellation of the decade-long Apple Car project, it's unclear how committed the Cupertino tech giant really is to bringing a new product to market. However, if Apple wants to explore another way to improve consumers' lives, then a home robot is the logical choice.

Reports also suggest that Apple could price its first tabletop robot somewhere to compete with Amazon Astro. Therefore, the price can be around 1000 USD. It is important to know that these robotic devices are in the early stages of development. So, there is no solid evidence or official statement that we will see them.

Samuel Daniel

Update 28 August 2024