Apple’s iPad event was an AI teaser for its future

Apple’s (AAPL) AI push has begun. On Tuesday, the company revealed its latest iPad Pros with an all-new M4 processor. The chip gives the Pro a number of benefits, including a faster CPU and an upgraded graphics processing unit.

But it was Apple’s focus on the M4’s AI capabilities that stood out most. Apple has been putting its neural engine into processors since 2017 and has been talking about how it helps power various iPhone, iPad and Mac features for some time now.

But the launch of the M4 was different, serving as a preview for the AI ​​capabilities the company will showcase at its WWDC event in June, when Apple is expected to launch a series of AI-powered generative software features for its various devices.

The M4 and AI

Apple pointed out a number of M4’s AI bona fides during the keynote, with vice president of platform architecture Tim Millet specifically noting that the chip is capable of 34 trillion operations per second, a commonly used measurement. used when describing a chip’s AI performance.

Millet also said that the M4’s neural engine is more powerful than any neural processing unit in any AI PC. This is a direct shot at Intel (INTC), AMD (AMD), and Qualcomm (QCOM), which are preparing or already launching their own PC AI chips designed to run large language models on Windows laptops and desktops.

Outside of the M4’s AI processing fundamentals, Apple has remained silent on any substantive discussions about AI software updates. Of course, Millet said the M4 helps the iPad Pro quickly isolate a subject from its background in a 4K video, but the M2-equipped iPad Air can do the same thing, just a little slower. All the company had to offer was that the M4 would make apps and AI features run faster and smoother.

The company also didn’t provide information about how the M4 performed during training or running large language models (LLMs), something Intel, Qualcomm, and AMD regularly point to as indicators of their chips’ strengths.

Still, the fact that Apple has given consumers, and Wall Street, an early look at its thinking on AI is important.

The company is widely seen as a latecomer when it comes to the generative AI race, and investors are betting heavily on WWDC serving as Apple’s big AI launch party.

CEO Tim Cook has been mentioning AI more constantly in recent months and said during the company’s most recent earnings call that the iPhone maker is investing heavily in the technology.

This includes buying smaller AI companies and, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, holding talks with OpenAI and Google about potentially using their large language models to power Apple’s AI experiences.

The story continues

Analysts expect Apple’s generative AI offerings to serve as a catalyst to help boost iPhone sales at a time when consumers are increasingly holding onto their phones for longer and flashy new features that differentiate one generation from another are sold out.

Now Apple just needs to deliver.

Email Daniel Howley at dhowley@yahoofinance.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DanielHowley.

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