Tech titans talk truce? Apple and Meta reportedly discussed an AI partnership

Apple might have been a latecomer to the generative AI party, but it is stepping up its game. The company created its own smaller AI models but is also partnering up for the heavy lifting. At the recent WWDC, the Cupertino tech giant introduced Apple Intelligence and announced OpenAI’s ChatGPT as its first partner. However, it seems Apple is pulling out all the stops to weave generative AI into Apple Intelligence.

Apple reportedly held talks with Meta about an AI partnership

A recent Wall Street Journal report reveals that Facebook’s parent company, Meta, has been in talks with Apple about integrating Meta’s generative AI models into Apple Intelligence, the newly announced AI system for iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks. This info comes from sources familiar with the discussions.

The Cupertino tech giant has also reportedly had similar discussions with startups Anthropic and Perplexity. However, nothing has been finalized yet.

In its talks with AI companies, Apple isn’t looking to charge or be charged, said the people familiar with the matter. Instead, these AI companies can sell premium subscriptions through Apple Intelligence. Similar to the App Store model, Apple would get a share of the subscription revenue.

If Apple makes deals with more partners besides OpenAI, users could pick which external AI models they want to use alongside Apple's own systems.

The talks with Meta underscore the surprising alliances forming in the AI world. For example, OpenAI's tech is already slated for integration into both Microsoft and Apple devices. And an Apple-Meta partnership would be especially noteworthy given their history of clashes over new tech issues.

Tensions between Apple and Meta go back over a decade. In 2021, Apple's privacy changes to its mobile devices reportedly cost Meta $10 billion in lost revenue in 2022. And not long ago, Meta advised advertisers on how to bypass Apple's 30% service charge for boosted posts, a point of contention between the two companies for years.

Apple’s playing it smart by chatting with different AI companies, making sure it doesn’t put all its eggs in the OpenAI basket. Rumor has it the tech giant has also been in talks with Google about using its cutting-edge Gemini models in iOS. However, it is still up in the air how open exactly Apple will be to letting these external AI players into its new platform.