Apple has its own AI model coming: Is the tech giant finally catching up in the AI race?

Apple has its own AI model coming: Is the tech giant finally catching up in the AI race?،

TL;DR:

Apple recently revealed research into its own AI model, MM1, which can understand both text and images.
This development suggests that Apple is working on more powerful AI capabilities for its products.
The research indicates that Apple is catching up and preparing to play a bigger role in the AI race.

You've probably seen how the tech world is going crazy for generative artificial intelligence, but guess who's been a little tight-lipped about it? Yes, Apple. But guess what? Recent discussions indicate that the Cupertino tech giant is talking with Google about borrowing its Gemini AI to give Siri a boost and jazz up iOS with new AI tricks. And now even more information is emerging. Last week, Apple quietly released a research paper (via Wired) detailing its efforts on a multimodal language model (MLLM) called MM1, capable of handling both text and images. The report shows that MM1 answers questions about photos and displays a wide range of general knowledge skills similar to those of chatbots like ChatGPT. While the model's name remains a mystery, MM1 could simply stand for MultiModal 1. MM1 appears to share similarities in design and complexity with recent AI models from other tech titans, like Google's Gemini and Llama 2 open source from Meta. Research conducted by Apple's competitors. and academia indicates that models of this caliber can power competent chatbots or develop “agents” capable of carrying out tasks by coding and executing actions such as interacting with computer interfaces or websites. This suggests that MM1 could eventually become a key part of Apple's product line.

In one thread onBrandon McKinzie, Apple researcher and lead author of the MM1 paper, commented:

This is just the beginning. The team is already working hard on the next generation of models. A big thank you to everyone who contributed to this project!

MM1 is a large multimodal language model, or MLLM, meaning it is trained on both images and text. This unique training allows the model to respond to text prompts and answer complex questions about specific images.

In one example from the Apple research paper, MM1 was shown a photo of a restaurant table with beers and a menu. When asked about the expected cost of “all the beer on the table“, the model accurately identifies the price and calculates the total spend.

Apple's iPhone already has an AI assistant, Siri. However, with the rapid emergence of competitors like ChatGPT, Siri's once-revolutionary capabilities are starting to seem limited and outdated. Amazon and Google have announced plans to integrate Large Language Model (LLM) technology into their respective assistants, Alexa and Google Assistant. Google even allowed Android phone users to swap Assistant with Gemini.

As competitors like Samsung and Google roll out numerous generative AI features for their smartphones, Apple is under pressure to stay competitive. Apple CEO Tim Cook assured investors that the company will reveal more details about its generative AI initiatives this year.

Additionally, just recently, Apple acquired DarwinAI, a Canadian AI startup known for developing compact and efficient AI systems. All of this suggests that Apple is gearing up to make a splash in the AI space, so we can expect many more updates in the near future. Keep an eye out for further developments!