Gurman: Apple has refused to cooperate with Meta on iPhone AI! But Apple has unveiled AI large model "New Narrative Logic"

According to the financial news app Smart Finance, Mark Gurman, a well-known Apple product leaker who has accurately revealed iPhone update details multiple times, recently stated in a new article that sources familiar with the matter revealed that Apple Inc. (AAPL.US) had rejected a proposal from Facebook's parent company Meta Platforms (META.US) to integrate its AI chatbot into the iPhone several months ago. Sources disclosed that the two tech giants did not discuss using Meta's developed Llama chatbot in their AI collaboration as reported by some media outlets, but only had a brief discussion in March. The discussions about collaboration did not progress to any formal stage, and Apple did not have any active plans to integrate Llama.

Renowned Apple leaker Gurman mentioned in his article that the initial negotiations between Apple and Meta began when Apple was discussing using the AI chatbots ChatGPT from OpenAI and Gemini from Google in its iPhone product line. Subsequently, this iPhone manufacturer announced a cooperation agreement with ChatGPT earlier this month and expressed expectations to provide Gemini AI services in the future.

Gurman stated that sources he contacted revealed that Apple had already decided not to proceed with formal discussions with Meta, partly because Apple believed that the company's privacy protection measures were not strict enough. It is worth noting that Apple has been criticizing Meta's technology for years, so integrating the Llama large model into the iPhone would be a significant shift.

Similar to Microsoft, Apple also considers ChatGPT to be a superior product. Meanwhile, Google is already Apple's search engine partner for the Safari web browser, so any future transactions between Apple and Google's Gemini will be built on this foundation of trust.

Spokespersons for Apple and Meta declined to comment. Earlier reports from the media on Sunday claimed that the two companies were actively negotiating AI cooperation, and Gurman's latest article undoubtedly serves as a strong response to the rumors reported on Sunday.

On June 10th, Apple unveiled a series of AI features at its Worldwide Developers Conference. This new AI technology called "Apple Intelligence" includes AI one-click summary notifications, automatic transcription of voice memos, and Apple's proprietary tools for generating custom emojis.

However, Apple's exclusive AI chatbot technology is not as advanced in usage scenarios as its competitors, prompting it to seek partners such as ChatGPT from OpenAI. The company also believes that customers may want to switch between AI chatbots based on different large models according to their needs, similar to how they switch between Google search engine and Microsoft's Bing search engine for searches Under the Apple Intelligence technology, embedding AI large models such as ChatGPT on the edge side, the AI chatbots will be fully integrated with Apple's Siri voice assistant. This move will allow Apple iOS system users to control all functions of a single application (App) solely by voice, and to some extent achieve comprehensive linkage and interaction of applications. Siri's positioning may no longer be a clumsy formalized voice assistant, but rather a dedicated "all-powerful AI companion" similar to the one in the movie "HER".

Sources also indicate that Apple is actively discussing cooperation with Anthropic, the strongest competitor of OpenAI in the field of artificial intelligence startups, and may ultimately choose the company's AI chatbots as a core option. It is understood that Apple Intelligence will be rolled out to Apple customers later this year as an important part of the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Mac operating systems.

According to insiders, the current transaction agreement between Apple and OpenAI does not involve financial exchanges, but Apple will allow paid ChatGPT customers to access their ChatGPT subscription users within the iOS operating system, and allow Apple users to conveniently subscribe to ChatGPT within the iOS operating system. This may bring additional subscription revenue to OpenAI, some of which may flow into Apple's sales in the form of App Store commissions.

Interestingly, as early as 10 years ago, when this iPhone manufacturer integrated Facebook into the iOS operating system, the relationship between Facebook's parent company Meta and Apple was more friendly. However, in recent years, the two companies have become fierce competitors, especially in the fields of artificial intelligence, smart home devices, and mixed reality (MR) headsets.

Apple Introduces AI Large Model "New Narrative Logic"

Overall, Apple's cooperation model with OpenAI, as well as potential cooperation with Google and Anthropic, is similar to the App Store: AI large model companies can sell their AI chatbot technology services through the Apple Intelligence cooperation agreement for advanced subscription services, with Apple taking a portion from the subscription revenue of its terminal devices such as iOS.

For Apple, the more AI large model companies it collaborates with, the more potential choices it can provide to its vast user base. At the same time, Apple brings a "new narrative logic" of AI large models. Apple has previously stated that if agreements are reached with partners other than OpenAI, Apple customers can choose external AI large models they want to use in addition to Apple's internal large model system For artificial intelligence companies, reaching a cooperation agreement with Apple on large-scale AI models such as the iPhone will help these companies leverage Apple's powerful platform to achieve a wider product distribution scale. For large model manufacturers like OpenAI and Anthropic, having access to up to 1 billion Apple smartphone users undoubtedly brings higher profits compared to the existing advertising traffic-based customer acquisition model.

Apple's AI Strategy Receives Positive Outlook from Wall Street! Two Major Institutions Simultaneously Raise Target Price to $240

Apple's AI strategy has received strong endorsements from many investment institutions on Wall Street, with both CFRA and Bernstein raising Apple's target stock price to $240 per share. This adjustment reflects a strong rebound in Apple's stock price since the end of April, rising 27% from a low of about $165 per share, with the new target price indicating a potential upside of about 17% for Apple's stock price, which has repeatedly hit new highs.

CFRA analyst Angelo Zino predicts that Apple will transform the iPhone into the "ultimate personal AI assistant." At this month's global developer conference, Apple showcased an AI strategy centered around Apple Intelligence technology, with an upgraded Siri boasting incredibly powerful conversational capabilities, marking a new advancement for Apple in the field of intelligent digital assistants.

Zino believes that Wall Street analysts may be underestimating the sales volume of the upcoming iPhone 16, forecasting a growth of 3% to 5% in sales volume, with Apple's ability to increase iPhone prices. He further points out that the development of Apple Intelligence technology will support consumers' continuous upgrade demand, which is driven by Apple's loyal user base and massive user foundation. This evolutionary, rather than cyclical, nature of artificial intelligence will help Apple achieve sustained performance growth for many years.

Bernstein analyst Toni Sacconaghi also holds an optimistic view on the prospects of Apple's stock. Sacconaghi believes that Apple demonstrated its leadership position in the field of artificial intelligence during the WWDC keynote speech, and has the ability to popularize AI technology to more consumers globally through its user base of over 1 billion iPhone users.

In his report, Sacconaghi points out that Apple's massive user base provides a huge opportunity for the company to monetize AI features. In addition to driving iPhone upgrade cycles through AI features, Apple can also generate advertising revenue through AI-powered search queries, and if more AI-focused applications are released, Apple's App Store revenue is expected to further accelerate.

Sacconaghi also suggests that Apple can use Apple Intelligence as a channel intermediary for third-party large models or other AI applications, thereby earning commercial commissions or promotion fees, providing Apple with additional sources of revenue In addition, senior analyst Dan Ives from the well-known Wall Street institution Wedbush reiterated that Apple will fully dominate the way consumers use and experience artificial intelligence technology. Dan Ives said, "We believe Wall Street is beginning to realize that with Apple Intelligence officially unveiled, Apple will become the gatekeeper of the consumer artificial intelligence revolution."

Dan Ives added, "Developers/other artificial intelligence technology giants (such as Google) may join Apple's artificial intelligence ecosystem in the near future." He stated, "Artificial intelligence will bring Apple a stock price increase of $30 to $40 per share. This will be nearly 15% higher than the current level."