Apple’s well documented struggles to upgrade Siri with AI might have an unexpected fix. Per Mark Gurman, Apple is considering powering its revamped Siri with third-party AI models from Anthropic or OpenAI. Here’s why that could be the best move for Apple and users.

Apple’s struggling to keep up with AI innovations

In the smartphone era, Apple’s success has been tremendous.

The iPhone is ridiculously popular and very profitable. And it’s powered a stronger Apple ecosystem than ever, with services and other Apple products finding big success too.

But for all of Apple’s current dominance, there are worries about its future.

Why? Because AI is ushering in a new technology era, and so far Apple doesn’t appear well equipped for it.

There are plenty of solid Apple Intelligence features available today, but the kind of AI capabilities that seem most transformative haven’t yet materialized.

Meanwhile, companies like OpenAI, Google, Anthropic, and more seem to pushing AI into new, exciting territory.

Siri was supposed to get upgrades that could make it more like ChatGPT or Gemini, but they got delayed into next year.

Now, it seems, Apple is considering powering those features not with its own AI technology, but that of OpenAI or Anthropic.

And I believe that could be a huge win for everyone.

Why Anthropic or OpenAI tech could be Apple’s best move

For whatever struggles the company’s facing internally, Apple has at least two major AI advantages:

1. It’s a product-first company
2. It controls hardware and software for billions of users

The former is important because, as transformative as AI has the potential to be, cool technology alone won’t make a dent in users’ lives. It needs to be paired with a great product.

Apple’s product expertise could help it turn powerful AI technology—like OpenAI and Anthropic can offer—into a compelling user experience.

Being able to bake that technology into Apple’s familiar hardware and software would make AI more accessible for the masses, too.

Even though Apple likes to control as much tech as possible in its devices, partnering with a third party seems like the best short-term move for the company.

Users would get access to some of the best of what AI can offer, presented in an Apple-designed, user-friendly package.

Meanwhile, Apple can continue working behind the scenes to beef up its own AI technologies in the hopes of one day not needing its new partners.

We’ve seen similar stories play out several times before, like with Apple replacing Google Maps with its own solution, and Qualcomm’s 5G modem with its own C1.

The main difference is, in those cases Apple had the partner from the start. This time, it’s tried its own ‘Apple Intelligence’ approach and might need to pivot.

Apple’s AI solution: OpenAI or Anthropic?

I’m sure there are plenty of brilliant people at Apple striving to create the best AI possible.

But for now, if Apple wants to prioritize user experience above all else, it might just mean striking a deal with OpenAI or Anthropic.

Then working behind the scenes for years to make that deal no longer necessary.

Do you think Apple Intelligence should use more third-party AI tech, or prioritize in-house models? Let us know in the comments.

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