Top line
The new range from Apple Advantages of the iPad will feature a processor that the company says is an “incredibly powerful chip for AI,” as the tech giant laid the groundwork for long-awaited generative AI features in its products amid investor concern that it is falling behind in the race to exploit new technology.
FILE – In this June 16, 2020 file photo, the sun reflects off the Apple store on Fifth Avenue in New York. … (+)
Highlights
The new M4 chip represents an upgrade over the M2 chips that powered the last generation of iPads and the M3 chips that power Apple’s current generation of MacBook laptops, the company said in a statement. announcement Tuesday.
Tuesday’s announcement did not provide details on potential AI features that could be integrated into Apple technology, although Tim Millet, Apple’s vice president of platform architecture, did gave an example, claiming that users would be able to isolate the subject of a 4K video and remove the subject. in the background with a single tap in Apple’s Final Cut Pro app.
Millet said the neural engine that powers the M4 chip’s AI capabilities has been included in Apple chips for years, but this latest neural engine is 60 times more powerful than Apple’s earliest models and “more powerful than any neural processing unit in any AI PC today. .”
On Tuesday, Apple announced a new lineup of Advantages of the iPad which the tech giant called the thinnest yet, available in 11-inch and 13-inch models with OLED screen technology starting at $999 for the 11-inch model.
He also announced his new ipad airrunning on the M2 chip, offered in a new, larger 13-inch option for $799. The iPad Air and iPad pro can be ordered online on Tuesday and in stores on May 15.
Apple action was up slightly – less than a percentage point – after Tuesday’s announcement.
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To monitor
Apple could reveal more of its AI plans at its next Worldwide Developers Conference on June 10. CEO Tim Cook said Tuesday that the company plans to “talk about the future of our platforms and share exciting details about what’s to come” at the event. Cook has said previously the company is “investing significantly” in AI and will make further announcements on the topic “later this year.”
Contra
Apple’s artificial intelligence plans could face immediate competition. The Verge reports that Microsoft is configured to host an event in Seattle this month where it plans to unveil its vision for the future of “AI PCs” and could launch new hardware featuring its Arm AI chips.
Key context
Sales of Apple’s flagship iPhone have plummeted, down 10% year over year in the first three months of 2024, leading to a 4% decline in revenue in the final quarter. And although Apple is considered the most profitable US public company, its shares have been downward trend in recent times due to declining iPhone demand in China and concern over Apple’s lack of major players in the artificial intelligence space.
Large number
38,000 billion. This is the number of operations that the neural engine of the new M4 chip can perform per second, Apple said on Tuesday.
