Your next iPhone may use chips designed by something other than humans

The future might bring along an iPhone that packs chips made by non-humans. Yup, the future is now!

We're not talking about Apple outsourcing its production to Mars and employing some little green fellas after the alleged pull out of China. Although that's probably going to happen at a point in time – unless, instead, it's we who are colonized to assemble some other planet's iPhones.

Back to reality, though: Reuters reports that Apple is meditating on the idea of putting the yoke on artificial intelligence, with the intention of using it "to help speed up the design of the custom chips". In other words, AI might be responsible for the chips in your next iPhone. Or iPad, or Apple Watch, or Mac, or Vision Pro.

The claims come from Apple's chief hardware technology executive, Johny Srouji, who allegedly made some remarks in a speech in Europe. He was there because he had to receive an award from a semiconductor research and development group, partnering with many of the biggest chipmakers in the world.

Reuters reviewed a recording of the speech made by Apple's senior vice president of hardware technologies and in it, he painted a bright picture for the future, while also going back to 2010 and Apple's development of the first A4 chip.

He also explained that one of the most important takeaways from the company's chip development journey was the need to adopt the most advanced tools available, including state-of-the-art software from electronic design automation (EDA) companies. Leading EDA firms like Cadence Design Systems and Synopsys have been rapidly enhancing their platforms to support increasingly complex chip designs:



He emphasized that these companies play a vital role in helping Apple manage the growing intricacies of chip creation. He also noted that newer design approaches can significantly accelerate development timelines and improve efficiency across teams. That sounds like an upcoming round of layoffs, doesn't it?

Another major lesson for Apple, he said, was the importance of committing fully to bold decisions. When Apple chose to replace Intel chips in its Mac lineup with its own silicon in 2020, it made the transition without fallback options. There was no alternative strategy or partial shift – Apple committed to the move completely, investing heavily in both hardware and software to make it succeed.

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