Apple has not yet released its new AI functions to everyone, but rumors are already rife that the iPhone maker wants to make users pay for them. However, according to new media reports, this is a scenario that is still very far away. In three years at the earliest, Apple Intelligence could include suitable functions that Apple can tailor to a product. Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman now reports,
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Market observers expect Apple to opt for a tiered model with free basic features and paid premium features. The company has been doing something similar with iCloud for years. Each registered user gets 5 gigabytes of storage space for free. If you need more – and this need arises immediately when using the backup function or the Photos app – you will have to pay accordingly and also get additional functions such as iCloud Private Relay in iCloud+.
AI locally on the device and server
When it comes to Apple Intelligence, it will be particularly questionable whether Apple also charges for AI tasks that are executed locally on the user’s device or only for services that make heavy use of Apple’s data centers. However, since the boundaries of Apple’s AI cloud private cloud compute are fluid, it is not clear to users what is being processed, at least in the currently available trial versions.
The second thing is that Apple is in competition with other AI providers. These do not offer as close integration into the operating systems of the iPhone, iPad and Mac as Apple would like. However, they currently offer their services largely free of charge. Users usually only have to pay extra if they increase their usage, if they want more reliability during peak times or if they want to use better language models.
The fact that Apple is patient with its monetization plans is demonstrated by its emergency SOS function via satellite. When the data services were launched, it was announced that Apple was planning to charge for it. Even today, the satellite services can be used for free. And no specific start date for the paid service has been revealed yet.
What is the priority currently?
However, the initial focus of Apple Intelligence is to launch all the announced services in as many countries as possible. The current beta versions of iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1 and macOS Sequoia 15.1 only include text-based AI functions. The announced options for image creation such as Zenmojis or the improved voice assistant Siri are still pending. In the European Union and China, it is also unclear when these first features will be officially available, as Apple still needs clarification regarding the EU’s regulatory requirements or, in China, has to agree on key points with government authorities.
(MKI)
